


How We're Made

by paox



Category: One Piece
Genre: ASL Brothers, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Wings, Gen, Multi, futuristic AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-22
Updated: 2018-03-03
Packaged: 2018-12-18 16:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 39
Words: 151,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11878269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paox/pseuds/paox
Summary: In a world where people born with wings are considered inferior to humans, Sabo does his best to fight for equality. His whole world changes when he meets Ace and Luffy, two Fae living on the wrong side of the law. Ace hates humans more than anything but his younger brother is more than willing to extend a hand, and the trio form a bond that will last until death.





	1. The Boy from the Stacks

**Author's Note:**

  * For [zoewinter1](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zoewinter1/gifts).



_Winter_

The telltale bangs and pops of rubber bullets crash on Sabo's eardrums as the crowd around him shatters. People hurl themselves in every direction, arms over their heads, screaming and abandoning their placards in favour of protecting their bodies. Dropping his own cardboard sign, Sabo raises his arms to protect his face and sprints in the opposite direction of the storm of bullets, heart throwing itself against his ribcage. He should be used to this by now - the chaos that reigns when a protest is finally broken up - but he's not. He's far from it.

A pair of wings slap against his face roughly as another protester tries to escape. Sabo attempts to push past her, fear infecting his veins like ice, but she falls with a scream before he can as a bullet hits her right between the shoulder blades. The blonde doesn't want to leave her, but before he can even think to help her, his ears catch onto the telltale 'hiss' that is a canister of tear gas being snapped open and thrown. Regretful, he turns away and pelts towards a side alley, sucked up by the crowd. More wings push in on him from all sides, and he can feel heated glares on his own wingless shoulders. At this rally, he's the outcast.

Reaching an alleyway, Sabo doesn't hesitate to grasp onto the first drainpipe he sees, spidering up the wall at such a pace that his head spins. He reaches a window ledge on the second floor and perches on it, eyes glued to the carnage below. Fae, the protestors he was standing with not even five minutes ago, are being gunned down and gassed at such a rate that they appear to be falling like dominoes. Armoured figures thunder through the streets, flushing out the last of those fleeing, their plexiglass faceplates glinting in the grey sunlight. Sabo can see his abandoned placard lying on the ground in the square; ' **FREEDOM FOR THE FAE** ', it says in red block capitals, but now it's peppered with muddy footprints and bullet holes.

Knowing that he'll be spotted at any minute, Sabo clambers the rest of the way up until he reaches the rooftop, arms and legs burning with the strain. A series of sharp bangs ring out, deeper and more distinctive than the snap of rubber bullets, and Sabo knows that the real rounds must have been brought out by now. What was once a peaceful protest is now a warzone.

Crouching low to the ground, Sabo follows the trail of rooftops as quietly as he can until the sound of bullets fades. The sun above is clouded by ash, as always, and the Stacks are visible on the horizon. It's a long walk, but it's necessary if he wants to be back home by nightfall. Uptown, dominated by hulking three-hundred storey monsters, shrinks behind him. The grey district is visible from here, too - it's further into the city than the Stacks but still on the outskirts, filled with clustered, low flats, grimy and overpopulated. It feels ironic to Sabo that on some days, he wishes he could live there. God knows it's better than the Stacks.

Once the carnage of the ruined protest is far behind him, Sabo slips back down to the streets, glad to be back on solid ground. Glancing at his watch, he does a quick calculation. It's 1400 now so by the time he gets to the Stacks, it should be 1500 at the latest. His shift at the Farmers' Inn is at 1900, stretching on until the early hours of the morning, so he should have a few hours to himself at home, at least. He picks up his pace.

A male Fae suddenly pushes past, and Sabo can physically see him cringing as he realises that he's pushed past a  _human_. He turns, face full of dread, and Sabo notes that he looks even younger than him. "I'm so sorry, sir, I just didn't realise that you were- and I'm-"

Putting on the most reassuring expression that he can, Sabo raises his hands. "Hey, hey, it's okay! Are you alright?"

The Fae gapes. "Uh- y-yes, yessir, I'm fine!"

"Good! I was worried I might have hurt you. Sorry for my clumsiness." Sabo smiles at the other as good-naturedly as he can before turning and getting back to walking, ignoring the shocked gaze he can feel on his back.

When the Fae is out of sight, however, Sabo's smile slips. A very familiar rush of indignance leaps up inside him, and he's reminded yet again how sick it makes him that the male Fae had that expression on his face; like he was scared of losing his life, just for bumping into a human. The inequality makes Sabo's blood boil in his veins.

But the fire is dulled. He's been feeling that fire for a very long time - frustration, anger, sadness, determination - and by now, it's muted and weak. He still cares, but at seventeen, he's running out of fuel for the flames. The smoke and the fire of passion are fading; after hundreds of failed rallies, after being shot and gassed and beaten to the ground just for trying to make a change, that much seems natural. The colour is being seeped out of him.

When you live on the Stacks, it tends to do that to you.

The grey district is fast approaching now, and Sabo curls in on himself slightly, pulling at the sleeves of his sweatshirt so they cover more skin. Definitely not his favourite neighbourhood. High Fae population; more importantly, high criminal population. The people here don't live in the same level of depravity as those on the Stacks, but they're further into the city; they're angrier, they know more about what really lies below the skin of this place. On the Stacks, it doesn't matter whether you're Fae or human – everybody is subhuman, no matter what – but here, the exact opposite applies.

Sabo walks against the crowd, travelling in the opposite direction of the flow that leads further into the city. He feels the usual suspicious looks from all sides, and his skin crawls. He keeps his head down. The burn scars on the side of his face feel cold and painfully exposed, smarting in the bitter December cold.

Somebody pushes past him, bare-shouldered and very obviously human. "Watch it!" the stranger growls viciously, pushing Sabo hard enough to send him stumbling back. He catches himself before it can cause a scene and turns away, knowing that it's pointless to start a drama in a place like this. The blonde listens to the stranger's stamping footsteps as he thunders away.

Sabo has had to make this journey time after time for two years now, but it still never fails to disconcert him. Somebody else pushes past him, winged and huddled against the cold, and Sabo waves off her sullen apology before she can get it out. All he wants to do now is go home, nurse his frayed nerves and get working on a new sign. He feels some new kind of fatigue, something that stretches right through his skin.

As he hurries, he pretends not to notice the distinct pair of eyes watching him from across the street.

By the time Sabo gets to the Stacks, he's dragging his feet. The mac-rations in his sweatshirt pocket feel heavy. The domineering forms of the Stacks tower over him, and against the moving clouds, they look like they're about to fall over. The ground is muddy and trodden down, peppered with pieces of gravel and shrapnel. Sabo knows the way through like the back of his hand and he picks through the rubble of rusted car parts on autopilot, letting his mind wander.

The Stacks have always represented something sad for Sabo. He knows their history well. Forty-three years ago, in the throes of the housing crisis, Edward Newgate - the now-dismissed third regulator of Region 7 - came up with the brilliant idea to take all of the trailer homes clustered around the city and use cranes to pile them on top of one another, one by one. At first, for maybe even ten years, it was a well-meaning and orderly system. But when Newgate was dismissed from his post and disappeared into obscurity, all that went down the drain.

The safety of those living in the Stacks became less of a priority than it had ever been. The huge structures grew higher and higher, piercing the clouds, held up by bare lances of scaffolding. Stairs were soon considered unneeded; the residents of the Stacks grew hardy, having to climb hundreds of feet of sporadic metal support poles just to get to their homes every day. Life got harder, and it only got even worse when the Stacks were officially denounced as official houses.

Now, the residents of the Stacks couldn't get formal work. Their lives grew riskier still and the world got more dangerous. Many of them grew to hate Edward Newgate. A vicious trend grew in popularity, and it soon became common to find bodies hanging from the scaffolding. Starvation and disease became common sights. Many soon grew to consider the Stacks a living hell.

They're what Sabo's parents used to use to scare him, telling him that he would end up living there if the debates didn't stop. Of course, he never actually  _believed_  them, but here he is.

He goes the long way, dodging the places where he knows that it's likely that you'll get stabbed. The base of each Stack has a large number sprayed onto it, and he walks quickly past three, seventeen, ninety-eight and thirty-one (they're in no particular order) before finally catching sight of his own.

Stack forty-three is just as grey as all the others, stretching up and up until it disappears into the ash clouds. The trailers near the bottom look distinctly squashed, roofs caved in, the glass of their windows smashed and jagged. Trailing up the structure like a strange metal snake, the scaffolding stretches high into the sky. As Sabo gets closer, he can make out his own reflection in it, a blurred mass of blond hair and dull, grey-blue clothes.

The blonde speeds up to a run when he's a few feet from the base and jumps, scrambling to grab onto the first rung of the metal. The surface is rough and scrapes up the palms of his hands but he barely notices, pulling himself up to perch of the first bar before reaching for the next. He wraps his hands around it and heaves his legs up, muscles burning. The cycle continues; reach, pull, crouch, stand. Don't look at the ground. Don't make eye contact with the people you pass at each level. And especially don't make any noise.

First level - second, third, fourth, fifth. They pass without Sabo paying much attention to them. He only pauses when he reaches level twenty-one, reaching across to tap on the glass of the particularly destroyed-looking trailer home.

"Koala?"

After a few moments, a familiar head of auburn hair appears in the window. Koala waves, the red tattoo on her collarbone rippling, before gesturing further into the trailer and making a shushing motion. Sabo nods, returning the gesture and winking, and the friends smile at each other. Then, just to make her laugh, Sabo springs upwards and feints a tumble, swinging through the metal bars lazily with a goofy look on his face. Wide-eyed, Koala stifles a giggle and gestures to her fist threateningly.

She mouths, 'Asshole!'

Sabo sticks his tongue out, laughing silently, before waving goodbye and clambering more carefully up onto the next metal rung. His own trailer home used to belong to a man known by most as Burgess, a human who is now in prison and won't be getting out anytime soon. It's a solid, round number, trailer fifty out of one-hundred and three. Sure, it's a long way up, but Sabo is sure that it could be far, far worse.

By the time that he reaches his home, however, his whole body is aching. It's been a long day. With barely enough energy to heave himself through the window, he latches it tightly behind him and stumbles into the main room. There are only three real rooms - the kitchen, the bathroom-stroke-utility room and the main room, which mostly consists of a large, ratty couch and a table. Yawning and stretching, Sabo feels his eyes droop. Rain begins to patter outside, peppering the metal walls in a comforting, pulsing hum.

The couch rushes up to meet him, and he knows no more.

* * *

Wide wings tucked in just so he can get through, the grey-eyed seventeen-year old stumbles through his front door, dead on his feet. Outside, it has just begun to rain. What little colour the grey district has blurs and disappears. Shrugging off his jacket, Ace calls, "Luffy?"

A pair of footsteps pound down the stairs and a second later, Luffy skids into the room, hair flying. His face breaks into a wide, gleeful grin at the sight of his brother, and his wing twitches as he runs forwards, tackling him around the waist.

"Ace is home!" he cheers to the world at large. Ace returns the hug with a small smile, used to this ritual, as the rain outside picks up.

After a few seconds, he pushes Luffy away slightly and kneels down to examine his face. The fourteen-year old is still as scrawny as ever, skin as pale as his naturally Brazilian complexion will allow, but he looks cheerful enough to light up the drab apartment hallway they're standing in. The scar under his eye stands out sharply against the skin of his cheek. As always, his straw hat bounces on his back, held up by a string. His single wing, dull scarlet and just as skinny and scrawny as always, flaps slightly with excitement. He looks the same as always.

"You were away for three days this time," Luffy whines. "It gets longer every time!"

Pulling his little brother into a noogie, Ace rubs the top of his head roughly, laughing as he struggles. "And you'd better have went to school for all three of those days!"

When Luffy's face falls and he looks away, however, Ace releases him. "About that..."

"You didn't go to school, did you?" Ace asks flatly. When he gets a small, ashamed shake of the head in answer, he sighs and pulls away fully. "Luffy, we've talked about this! School's the most important thing for you, you  _need_  an education!"

Luffy's face reddens slightly and he looks down, clenching his fists. "You never went! And you're- you're-"

"A wanted criminal?" Ace deadpans. He turns back towards his jacket, rifling through the pockets and purposefully letting his wings hide him from Luffy's view.

"You're Ace! You're amazing!" Luffy throws his hands up in frustration. "When I turn sixteen I can just join the Blackbeards like you, or make my own crew - and Zoro said he would join if I did - I don't need school for tha-"

" _Zoro_  doesn't know shit," Ace decides, wheeling around with a scowl. "I never got the chance to go to school, Luffy, not even for a day. At least do what I couldn't!"

"Why should I?!"

Ace growls, pushing past the smaller teen and storming into the kitchen. "It's that kind of mindset that's ruining your education! Face it, your grades suck!"

" _You_  suck!"

"Arrh!" Ace makes a frustrated noise and throws himself into a seat at the kitchen table. Luffy stands in the doorway, fists clenched tightly, hair falling into his eyes. "What do you have against school?! Do you know what I would've given to be able to go?!"

"I just-" The flames in Luffy's eyes suddenly seem to diminish. His shoulders slump and he murmurs, "It all makes my head go funny. And they all talk too much, I can't concentrate on what they're saying... It makes my brain hurt and I just can't concentrate on anything, and everything goes all fuzzy and stupid."

Ace's anger fades almost immediately and he sighs, gesturing for Luffy to come sit across from him. The table is small and when Luffy sits tensely, Ace pushes his head down gently but firmly until it's resting on the wood. The second Ace reaches out to touch the crest of his brother's wing, Luffy practically melts, tension ebbing from his body.

"Look, I'm sorry," Ace sighs. "I know it's really hard, 'specially with being one of the only Fae there, and with ADHD and everything else to boot... But Luffy, you've got this amazing opportunity in front of you that most of us never get. What is it that I've always told you?"

"Don't meet their eyes," Luffy murmurs.

"Yet somehow, you've managed to get into a school taught by them, populated by them - you're living the life of a human teen, not a Fae one. You're so goddamn lucky to be there, Lu. You have no idea."

"We still live in the grey district..."

"Yeah, but the more time you spend in school, the less time you gotta spend here. Good trade?" reasons Ace.

"I guess so... Okay." Nodding, Luffy sits up, brow furrowed. "Okay. I'll go there more, I promise. Just... try to stay home a little more?"

Now, it's Ace's turn to slump. "Luffy..."

"I know you hate it there!" Luffy flares up. "It's obvious! And that Blackbeard guy is really creepy and I know you really, really hate him and- mmmhp!"

"Shh!" Ace hisses, looking around in a paranoid manner. In a low voice, he mutters, "You never know when they're listening."

Luffy shoots him an unimpressed look over his hand.

Ace rolls his eyes. "I mean it, Luffy. They're the only way I have to make money, and keeping you in school is hardly cheap..."

"Then why don't I just...?"

"No."

Luffy looks away, scowling bitterly. Looking down at the rough wood of the kitchen table, Ace picks at some blood crusted under his fingernails. After a few minutes of silence, Luffy asks, "So, when's your next job?"

"Tomorrow. But it's an easy one, I should be back here with you by nine. That sound good?"

A smile breaks out on the younger's face. "Yeah! What is the job?"

Cracking his knuckles, Ace stands and moves over to the kettle. The kitchen is so small that you can stretch out both arms in any direction and touch two walls, but it feels homely, at the very least.

"Just a kidnapping. We found out that some noble kid ran away from home two years ago - the eldest son of the Outlook family. We've tracked him down. Knowing the nobles, they'd be willing to throw away some money to get back their runaway brat, so I just need to deliver him to boss and then I'm done until Monday."

"So we get Sunday together?!"

"Of course!"

Luffy beams widely but after a few moments, his smile falls. A small frown worms its way onto his face. "The guy you're kidnapping... If he ran away from the nobles, doesn't it mean that he's a good guy? What if he didn't agree with what they were doing?"

Ace scoffs. Something viscous enters his eyes and Luffy shifts away from him, uncomfortable. "He probably just ran away for attention and couldn't find his way back, the spoiled brat. There are no 'good' humans, Luffy, especially not nobles. Do you see any of  _them_  fighting for our freedom?"

"I don't see you doing it, either..." Luffy mutters.

"That's only because I'm trying to keep you alive."

"Well, if you've got your reasons, why can't they have theirs?! There are good humans, you just refuse to believe it! Like San-" He cuts himself off before the name can get out, eyes wide as he realises his mistake.

"Like who?" Ace growls. He's suddenly gone very, very still.

"Like- like some people, that's what I said," Luffy lies.

Ace sees right through it. "Tell me the truth," he says in a soft, dangerous voice. He still doesn't turn away from the kettle.

"I am!"

"You're not!" Ace whirls around, shoulders raised like a raging bull as the golden-red feathers of his wings raise to make his form look larger and more domineering. "You're friends with a human!"

Luffy stands up with a scowl. "Yeah, well, so what if I am?!"

"A  _human_! Luffy, how many times have I told you?! They don't care about us! They're never going to care about us! I've told you what they did to me, isn't that enough for you?!"

"Forget that! Sanji cares about me! I know he does!"

Ace sniffs contemptuously. "Sanji. So that's his name. Good, I'll be able to hunt him down when he and his people eventually kill you."

Luffy stumbles back, eyes wide with hurt, and Ace immediately regrets his words. Before he can open his mouth to take them back, however, his younger brother's face settles into a mask of determined anger.

"You know what?!" Luffy shoves past Ace into the hallway, wing shaking with anger, and settles his straw hat onto his head. "You don't know anything! Sanji's one of my friends, and he's been here for me a lot more than you for the last few months!" He starts towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

"To stay with Sanji for the night. Let's hope he doesn't  _kill me_ ," Luffy says viciously, in a tone that Ace never even knew he had. He reaches for the doornob. Outside, it rains harder.

"If you walk out of that door..." Ace says threateningly.

Luffy ignores him, throwing open the door, and a second later he disappears into the night and the door slams behind him. Ace stands alone in the hallway, hand half-reached out, loneliness washing over him. Half of him wants to follow his younger brother out onto the street, his heart aching as he realises what he's just done, but he holds himself back. If he isn't back by tomorrow night, then Ace can panic. For now, maybe Luffy deserves some time away from him.

Feet dragging, Ace considers going to his room but decides against it, instead going to the lounge and lying down on the couch. He doesn't have the heart to grab a mac ration from the kitchen, and they don't have enough water saved up for him to be able to treat himself, so he nurses his empty stomach and listens for any sound from the hallway. He expects it to be hard to sleep, what with his worry about Luffy and everything else, but he finds his eyes drooping surprisingly easily.

Wrapping his large, vibrant wings around himself, Ace buries his face in his arms and lets himself go to sleep, feeling stupid, knowing that he might be pushing away the one thing he cares about the most.


	2. Fences

"The usual?"

The blonde-haired man, a regular, sits wearily at the bar across from Sabo. He smiles slightly and says, "As always, yoi."

Wiping his grimy hands with a rag (it's hard not to get dirty in a place like this), Sabo smiles and moves to prepare the usual - a pint of 'something strong', the same thing the blonde man asks for every time. Every Friday night, without fail, the man will be here. Sabo doesn't know much about him. Friday nights are generally slow here - every night is slow here, really - and once Sabo has served the man his drink, there's nobody for him to serve. So, as always, he ends up leaning against the bar and chatting with the blonde stranger.

Today, the topic starts on the miserable weather and moves onto Christmas plans. Their conversations are always simple but enjoyable. After working as a bartender for a year, Sabo is good at holding conversations with customers.

"Who are you spending Christmas with, yoi?" the man asks, tapping his pint glass with one fingernail. His strangely styled hair is dull in the dim light.

"Ah, nobody this year," replies Sabo flippantly. "What about you?"

Raising an eyebrow, the blonde man leans forwards and says quietly, "Me and my family live just out of the city boundaries, yoi. We'll be spending Christmas together."

Trying not to let his surprise show, Sabo asks, "The Stacks?"

"No, no way, yoi. We live a little to the west, just south of the mac-ration labs. I have... a rather large family." The man quirks a small smile.

"Sounds interesting," Sabo comments blithely. "Any siblings?"

"A few older brothers and a handful of sisters, yoi."

"No younger brothers?"

The man's eyes darken, and Sabo knows immediately that he's asked too much.

"No. Not for a long time, yoi," he says shortly. The tapping of his fingernail on glass stops. "I should be leaving soon."

"Look, sir, I'm sorry if I was too intrusive-" Sabo starts. He can't afford for word to reach his boss that he's driving away customers.

'It's alright," the man interrupts, standing. "It's not you, I promise."

He tosses something to Sabo - when the blonde sees what it is, his eyes widen and he stumbles his way through a hurried, flustered series of thanks. Before any other customers can see it, he tucks the double serving mac-ration into his pocket, feeling the dry, plasticky paper through the fabric. His heart is slamming itself hard against his ribcage.

"Sir..."

The man waves him off, smiling sadly. "Call me Marco, yoi."

Sabo watches the man's back, and as he reaches the door he calls, "See you next week, Marco!"

"Have a good Christmas," Marco says over his shoulder, before stepping out into the wet December night, putting the collar of his jacket up. A second later, he's gone. Sabo stands in shock for a moment or so, feeling the precious ration in his pocket, before smiling slightly at turning away to scrub down the bar again. It's obvious by now that no matter how many times the bar is cleaned, it remains grimy and dirt-smeared, but Sabo can't find much else to do.

It's a slow, quiet night, as always. Nobody bothers to drink much anymore, and those who do are either doing well for themselves (as Marco obviously is) or really don't have anything left else to lose. Water itself is precious these days, something to be treasured and saved up even when it's murky and practically undrinkable, so alcohol is practically within the realms of impossibility for the common man. The Farmers' Inn is going down the drain like every other business of its kind, and it pays its informal workers in rations rather than money. Soon, Sabo knows that he'll have to move onto the next job.

For now, however, he simply has to wait until the bar closes at midnight. The future can come later. Fingering Marco's gift as it lies in his pocket, Sabo drops his cleaning rag onto the counter and scrubs a hand over his face. He's utterly exhausted, still, even after sleeping for so long earlier. His next shift, at the conveyor this time, is at 0800 tomorrow, so he probably won't be able to truly rest until that shift is over. One of many downsides to informal work: you can never, under any circumstances, miss a shift. There will always be somebody waiting to replace you.

With nothing to occupy himself, Sabo finds his mind drifting to one of his favourite pastimes - history. Not many people, especially people living on the  _Stacks_  of all places, pay much attention to the past nowadays. Sabo likes too. It feels like reading about another world, some place too far beyond the fabric of reality that it seems impossible that it was ever their world at all.

The sky used to be blue. That in itself astounds Sabo. Now, in the new world, it's a constant cloudy grey, blurred with patches of dull grey ash. Infected by the damage of impending nuclear winter. They say every time a city goes up in a mushroom cloud, it gets darker, and it's hard not to agree.

But the sky used to actually be  _blue_. Sabo can't imagine it. Was it a deep, plastic-coloured blue? Was it a pale pastel? Was it more green or more purple, or both, or neither? Apparently, when the sun was visible - which it hasn't been for nearly fifty years now - it would make the sky bright orange and red and yellow at the start and end of every day. It's fascinating. It's foreign, like something you would read in a fairy tale. It's something that Sabo wishes he could have seen.

He probably would be able to, if it wasn't for the Infertility.

Infertility with a capital 'I', that is. Everybody knows what it is. The Infertility was like the first domino to be toppled in a long, convoluted string of unfortunate events one-hundred and sixteen years ago. It was the year 2023. Life was good. The sky was blue, and the world was rich. The biggest things people had to worry about were mediocre presidencies (excluding the mess that was the previous four years), global warming and soccer championships. The world only began to change when all of a sudden, sociologists slammed into a wall with their research. Stats that represented conceptions and maintained pregnancies plummeted in the course of a few days. Late menstrual cycle reports flared up everywhere all at once, getting later and later until women's sanitary product companies eventually started going bankrupt because there was simply nobody to buy them.

Nine months after the abrupt start of the strange events, all births stopped all at once. And that was when scientists, doctors, world leaders - that was when everybody began to panic, all at once.

Humans are stupid. Researching the Infertility for the first time, Sabo decided this almost immediately. Instead of combining research and resources like creatures with brains, the scientific divisions of the world split according to their countries. Russia and the US's rivalry flared up like it was the 60s all over again, and while countries raced to show of how advance their scientific methods were, the population plummeted and aged. Six years into the infertility, babies and toddlers were seen only in pictures and videos. Thousands of huge organisations - everything from baby care companies to adoption agencies - went down in flames. As the world descended into panic, the economy descended in much the same way, in every way possible.

In simple terms, with the possibility of a new generation fading, the world went to shit. By the time the scientific giants of the world came to their senses and truly began to throw everything they had into research, irreparable damage had occurred. This damage only really got worse when the US broke under the strain. Scientists everywhere were forced into doing everything possible to find some kind of answer. Experiments got wilder and more daring with every day. With no other option, human rights were thrown out of the window in hopes of saving humanity itself.

The US and Russia, the two biggest factions in the fight to stop the Infertility, went in very different directions with their research. While Russia took an environmental standpoint, trying to create contained atmospheres where conception could occur in a method they believed could truly work, American scientists turned to creating new creatures entirely in hopes of extracting their DNA.

And nothing worked until they finally started breeding Fae.

Ten years after the beginning of the Infertility, with the help of Fae wing-bone marrow, the first baby of a new era was born. Reports from the time replay the moment as hopeful. The world looked up. Women were injected with the bone-marrow cure throughout the world, and for a while, it seemed like the countries of the world were going to pull together. It only became evident that they wouldn't when people started pointing fingers.

The attempted cures had done no favours for the environment. While the world patted itself on the back for its ingenuity in finding a cure, the effects of Russia's long-term experimentation spread down through Europe in the form of an odourless, colourless, thin gas. Wildlife started dying. Eventually, people did too. The US took no time in blaming their fellow world superpower for it, claiming that there was no way that the spread of gas could be unintentional. In return, Russia took the courtesy to point out to the Americans that they had an entirely new race of sentiment creatures living in their country that they had yet to free - surely, it was a violation of human rights and decency?

So, grudgingly, the Fae were released into society. From that point, according to Sabo, everything got a whole lot simpler. The gas spread further, infecting every place it touched, turning the world grey. Drinking water became harder and harder to come by as it infected everything - oceans, rivers, streams - until even the sea itself was a dull, murky black. Apparently, before it was black, it was blue. Sabo has never seen the ocean, so he can't imagine either, but he's sure that blue must be the more pleasant option.

The Fae were mistreated, and that much has stayed until now. People objected against the inhumanity of it all but as tensions grew and grew between the US and Russia, soon they all had more to worry about then a few hundred earth-bound angels. And when nuclear war broke out, the Fae were utterly forgotten.

A hundred years doesn't sound like a time that can pass quickly, but that's how people describe it in books. The population crisis got worse, until measures like the Stacks had to be put into place, until normal food was replaced by cheap mac-rations, until water had to be saved up by the drop. Ash filled the blue sky from ballistic missiles. Entire countries were demolished overnight. By the time a century had passed since the start of the Infertility, the world was broken beyond repair.

That's the world that Sabo was born into. It's ugly and messy and has a constant sense of hanging on the edge of a cliff. Everybody knows that there might not be a world for much longer. Even young children get the talk as soon as they can talk - about what the mushroom clouds really mean, and what people with a red 'I' tattoo really are, and about how you can never drink too much water because it'll shrivel up your stomach. It's depressing but altogether, people are used to living in a fragile, breaking world. You have to get used to it, because there's no use in trying to change it. Not now.

"Oi, blondie."

The voice breaks Sabo out of his thoughts and he looks up. Another employee, a short woman with short, dark hair, is shooting him an amused look from across the bar. "Shakky?"

"We're locking up, Sabo," she says simply. "It's past closing time."

Face colouring, Sabo apologises and moves to grab his keys, thoughts still lingering on blue skies and vast, uninfected oceans.

* * *

Ace tucks his hands into his pockets, ducking his head to avoid meeting the suspicious glares directed his way. It's not common to see Fae in the Sabaody district, but it's where the noble brat gets off from work, so this is necessary. It's risky but not against the law, so it's a risk he can take. The brat works at the conveyor, the distributor of mac-rations for the east side of the city, and his shift ends in half an hour. He should end up walking down the very street that Ace is pacing along now, and that's when he'll strike.

He doesn't know anything about the noble kid - not where he lives, not his age, not even his name. All he has is a vague physical description: young and skinny, blonde hair, blue eyes, northern-European complexion, burn scars on his face. Ace doesn't care to wonder how he got the burn scars. It's not wise to show concern towards humans, even internally.

Still... he can't help but speculate. Why would a noble really run away? Is it even possible for a rich human to know that their fellow rich humans are doing the wrong thing? Is it possible... that he really could sympathise with what those the nobles are against?

Ace physically shakes his head, whirling around and pacing back down the street. It's a dangerous thought process to have, one that sympathises with the humans. He can't let himself be pulled into it. The shoulders of his jacket warmed by the noon sun, he has to resist the urge to extend his wings, feeling a bead of sweat roll down his back.  _Only half an hour more_.

Against his will, Ace finds himself glancing up the street towards the eastern side of the district. Luffy's school is only a few blocks away. Is he there now? Is he trying to get through the day, head hurting, missing his brother? Does he regret their fight? Stomach burning with anxiety, Ace finds that for a while, he can't look away. A part of him is tempted to go and find the kid and whisk him away from the place that he obviously hates. The more logical part of him knows that he can't, but still dislikes it. The realistic part of him knows that Luffy most likely isn't even there.

He never came home last night. Ace woke at 0800, worried out of his mind, and only left the house when he absolutely had to. Hopefully he can get this job over with by tonight and be back home in time to see Luffy. If he even comes home at all.

Ace doesn't realise just how long he's been pacing until he glances down at his watch and does a double-take. It's already 1209 - the kid's shift finished ten minutes ago. He should be passing any time now. Placing himself strategically in an alleyway, Ace peaks up the street, trying to act casual.

It takes a while but eventually, he catches sight of the blonde. He stands out in the crowd, visible as an outsider from a mile away. Sabaody is one of the richest districts in the city - though that's not saying much - and the kid who matches Ace's description looks laughably out of place. His blonde hair isn't dirty per se, but sticks out at the sides in a way that suggests that it hasn't had proper care in a very long time. His skin is visibly darkened by deep-set grime. Small in stature, his scrawniness only emphasised by the fact that he's of decent height, the ex-noble's burn scars stand out like a neon sign on his face. They sink into the hollows of his cheeks, hollows that remind Ace of Luffy, and he almost feels a little concern rise in his chest...

He shakes away the feeling before it can develop, angry at himself for even thinking it. Like a noble deserves anybody's pity.

The quicker he gets this job out of the way, the better.

* * *

Sabo tries not to attract attention as he walks briskly down the street, subtly nursing his stinging fingers. Like always after shifts at the conveyor, they're covered with paper cuts from the sharp edges of the packets. He can practically feel the smell of plastic that still lingers in his hair and on his clothes, like always. All he wants to do is get home to the Stacks. He has an entire twenty-four hours before his next shift, so hopefully he can replenish his sleep and repair some of the patches on his trailer. The Stacks are an ugly place but at the very least, they offer a very inviting couch in his trailer and a small store of water and mac's.

Turning off into an alley that he knows leads him to the train station the quickest, Sabo runs a hand back through his hair but freezes as he suddenly feels a harsh shiver run down his spine. He knows one thing immediately; he's being watched. Possibly even followed. He doesn't dare turn around or stop, speeding up until he's practically running as he feels the hairs on the back of his neck stand up on end. His body goes cold.

A rustle of wings behind him make him break out into a run, no longer caring about subtlety. The Fae behind him starts running too and Sabo can tell by the speed of their footsteps that they're far, far faster than him. He throws himself forwards the last few steps, trying to get past the end of the alleyway and onto the next crowded street, but before he can, a hand grabs him by the scruff of his sweatshirt and slams him, not at all gently, into the wall.

Slowly, Sabo opens his eyes.

The first thing he sees is grey. The man standing over him has grey eyes that border on silver, holding something that seems bright but not in any way pale. He's scowling down at Sabo with menace and when Sabo catches sight of his wings, his jaw drops. They're probably the most beautiful wings he's ever seen, and the largest. They stretch outwards fully now, making the man look larger than he is, at least eight feet to each side. The feathers are such bright, vibrant shades of red and gold that his wings might as well be on fire. They give the impression of being both painfully beautiful and incredibly dangerous.

"Look, I don't know what you want but I don't have anything to give you," Sabo manages to gasp out, as the man's other hand comes to his throat.

"Like hell you don't,  _noble_ ," the Fae growls. The words make Sabo struggle harder.

"Look, please, I just-"

Suddenly, something above the pair creaks gently. Sabo and the man glance up in unison. There's a small, metal footbridge going between two buildings directly above, wide enough to block out the sun. As they look at it, it creaks again.

The man looks down, into Sabo's eyes, and opens his mouth to yell just as the entire bridge collapses.

* * *

Marco knocks three times, as always.

It takes a while for somebody to open the door, and when they do, it happens slowly. Haruta's nervous, pale face appears in the doorway, and she only opens the door fully once she sees who it is. The nervousness doesn't leave her face entirely, but she smiles nonetheless.

"Marco!" She calls over her shoulder, "Everybody, Marco's home!" She turns back towards him after a second and says, curiously, "You're earlier than usual."

"The bartender was asking too many questions, yoi," he says half-seriously. Haruta laughs and steps aside to let him into the vast entrance hall, tenseness slowly ebbing from her frame.

"My son!"

Marco looks up and smiles as Oyaji's voice rings out through the hall. The old man is standing at the other end of the room, smiling down at Marco, as familiar as everything else here. "It's good to see you, Oyaji."

"We're glad that you're home safe, Marco. Is there any news from the city?"

"Nothing much, yoi." As Marco speaks, more of his siblings start to flood into the room. Izo smiles at him, their hair just as sleek and well-kept as it always has been. Jozu and Blenheim shoot him grins, and Vista twitches the end of his moustache at him with a smile. "It's still just as bad as always. And apparently Blackbeard's gang has been acting up a lot more recently - at least, that's what Rayleigh told me."

"How's Ray'?" a voice calls from the crowd.

"Just as mysterious as ever," Marco replies with a small smirk. Laughs break out through the room and the crowd begins to disperse as he makes his way over to Oyaji, beaming up at the old man and settling his bag on the floor. "I hope you don't mind that I used some of our mac-rations, yoi."

"A few missing won't do any harm," Oyaji says. "Should I ask what you used them for?"

"The same bartender serves me every week, yoi. He's nice enough, obviously from the Stacks because he's working there in the first place. He seems to lose more weight each week and..." He struggles for a second. "I don't know. I felt like I had to do something, you know?"

"Yes, I know," Edward Newgate says simply.

From behind them, Izo says, "For somebody who acts so tough, you do have a bad case of a bleeding-heart, Marco."

"You're one to talk, Izo, yoi."

"Look, the children are bickering!" Vista laughs, materialising beside them as Marco is shepherded into the dining hall. Marco flips him off lazily, to a chorus of 'oooh's from the others, and tries to hide his smile.

It's only later that night when the smile finally fades. Marco enters his room, ready to sleep, dumping his pack on the floor without care for where it ends up. He changes quickly and efficiently. It's late - or early, if you count the fact that it's well past midnight - and his mind keeps drifting back to the blonde bartender with gaunt cheeks. Where is he now? Sleeping in some trashed trailer home, waiting for his Stack to collapse?

Sure, call Marco a bleeding-heart softy, but its at times like this that he wishes he could invite people to live at the mansion. He barely knows the kid but he seems like a decent person, and Oyaji surely wouldn't mind...

The thought fades. It's stupid to try to take in every random stray he comes across, and Marco knows it. Damn his empathy for considering it.

He settles into bed, glancing across to the nightstand as he always does for the familiar picture. Ten years ago, even though the worry lines on his forehead were less, he looked remarkably similar to how he does now. In the photo (a precious artefact, as cameras are hard to come by nowadays), he's got his arm slung around the neck of a smiling boy, covered in freckles with black hair that sticks up everywhere. They're both obviously laughing hard at something off-camera, and the bright wings of the other boy wrap around them both like a blanket.

That photo was taken the day before the last time Marco ever saw Ace.

Sighing, Marco reaches across and turns the frame downwards, hiding its joyful, mirthful occupants from view. He rolls over and reaches up to the cord over his bed, pulling it to flick the lights off.

Into the dark he murmurs, "Where are you, Ace?"


	3. The Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't be able to update for a few days after this so this chapter is coming up a little early. Sorry about that :(  
> thank you for all the comments and kudos though, it means so so much!

Consciousness comes to Sabo slowly. His head is pounding like a drum in his skull and immediately, before much else process in his mind, he can taste the blood. Grimacing, he spits out a sticky glob, feeling as though his mouth is filled with pennies. His eyelids are heavy and near-unresponsive, and he recognises immediately (mostly from prior experience) that he's probably at least a little concussed.

 _Great_.

When he finally manages to get his eyes open, Sabo blinks into the darkness for a few seconds as his vision adjusts. His mind scrambles for some kind of explanation as to how he got here, jumbled and sluggish. There appears to be a large, bent surface of metal over him, crushed and malformed, leaving barely any space to breathe. From between the sheets of thick metal, minuscule shafts of light slip into the tiny space, and Sabo relaxes slightly with the realisation that the circulation of air is possible in here. He's got access to oxygen, at least.

It all comes rushing back, finally, when his eyes land on the body stretched out beside his. The Fae who attacked him is out cold, face twisted into a grimace of pain. One of his wings is trapped beneath the edge of the collapsed bridge, which has only not crushed them both due to the fact that it was bent by one of the support beams holding it up. Sabo's heart pounds harder as he realises how close to death he truly came.

For a second, he considers not helping the Fae. After all, the guy was presumably trying to kill or kidnap him. But Sabo takes one look at the look of pain on his face and his resistance melts - the stranger looks around his age, but the low light makes him look even younger, and his freckles give him a childish look even through the grimace. Sabo has no idea how long they're going to be here, and he can't just leave him. Blood is slowly running from a small piece of shrapnel in his shoulder, and Sabo winces, hovering over him with no idea where to start.

Bracing himself, he slowly reaches across and, as quickly as he can, tugs the piece of metal from the Fae's shoulder. The man clenches his jaw harshly and arches upwards, face screwing up with agony, but he doesn't wake. Quickly, as blood starts to flow more freely down his shirt, Sabo pulls off his sweatshirt and presses it against the gaping wound, breathing hard.

"Okay, okay, this is fine," he murmurs, not knowing whether he's trying to reassure the Fae or himself. "J-Just stay calm..."

He presses down harder, feeling his hands shake. Outside of their crushed alcove, there's no sound. Has somebody seen what happened yet? How long has it been? Surely somebody must have noticed by now, surely somebody must have heard...

But the minutes slip by, and nobody comes. Sabo tries to shout, voice hoarse and weak, but it doesn't do any good. Nobody is coming. He attempts to push up on the collapsed bridge, hands bent against cold metal, but it doesn't budge.

He's in the middle of his fourth attempt at yelling when the Fae's eyes finally flutter open. Sabo's chest loosens with relief and he leans across, lessening the pressure he's maintaining on his shoulder and smiling slightly as in result, the man's face loses a little of its pained tension.

"Can you hear me?" Sabo asks quietly, holding out his index finger. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Uh," the man groans eloquently, "Two?"

"Close enough." Taking a risk, Sabo removes his sweatshirt from the Fae's shoulder and folds it over to put under his head, trusting that the bleeding has slowed enough. The blood on the sweatshirt filling his hair, the man blinks lazily up at Sabo, eyes not fully seeing.

"Who- w-where are we? Who are you?" he croaks.

"I'm Sabo," the blonde replies, "And... Well, right now, we're trapped under a bridge. But we're in the Sabaody district, if that's what you meant."

At that moment, the stranger seems to remember everything and his eyes snap open quickly, awareness flooding them. He tries to shift away from Sabo hurriedly but stops abruptly, groaning with agony.

"Hey, hey, it's okay! I'm not going to try to hurt you or anything!" Sabo stutters.

"Yeah," the man scoffs bitterly, "Sure, I  _totally_  believe that. I tried to kidnap you and you want to be best buddies.  _Sure_."

"Well, sorry for stopping you from bleeding out, I won't try next time!" snaps Sabo. After a moment, however, the anger leaves his voice. "Look, I don't know why you wanted to kidnap me but... You knew I used to be a noble. I'm guessing that's why you hate me so much?"

"That and you're a  _human_ ," the other growls. His wings twitch aggressively. "Not like you people have a history of being buddies with us."

"Not all humans hate you, you know," Sabo says quietly. "Yeah, a lot do, but..."

"Even if you don't want to, all of you still end up the same." The man can't move much, so he turns his head away instead, glaring at his trapped wing.

For a while, there's silence. Sabo bites back the indignance that flares up inside him - the Fae has a right to be angry. He would probably be angry if he was him, too. "At least tell me why you wanted to kidnap me, then?"

The man snorts derisively. "The cash, what else?"

"I doubt I'd sell for much," says Sabo cautiously.

"That's not what I meant. We were gonna ransom you off to your parents. Bet they'd want their runaway toy back." He laughs again, just as angrily.

"Runaway?" Sabo tilts his head to the side. "What?"

"Don't act dumb," the Fae says scornfully. "You ran away two years ago. Before that, you lived in the high district with your noble parents. We know more than you think."

"Well," Sabo contemplates, "I didn't run away so much as I was forced away. S'not like they would have tolerated me much longer."

Clenching his jaw, the man looks away. "I don't want your backstory," he says shortly, even as Sabo can see the doubt swimming in his eyes. "Let's just wait until somebody sees what happened and we get out of here, and then you can blame it on me and I can go on my merry way to jail."

"I'm not going to do that," Sabo says quietly. He gets only a small, disbelieving grunt in return. After a few minutes, he breaks the silence tentatively and asks, "Can you at least tell me your name?"

There's a long silence, and for a while, Sabo thinks that he isn't going to answer. Just as he's about to give up, the Fae says quietly, "I'm Ace."

Sabo feels like what he should say is 'it's good to meet you' or 'thank you' or even 'we're going to die here', but instead what comes out of his mouth is, "Who do you work for?"

Ace does a double take and Sabo cringes, feeling him physically withdrawing. Scrambling to clarify what he meant, he adds, "I mean, I just want to know who wanted to kidnap me in the first place. A gang?"

"Yeah. A gang," Ace says shortly. It's obvious that that's all he's going to reveal. "Gotta support us somehow."

"'Us'?"

Ace curses under his breath. "None of your business," he mutters eventually, "Forget I said anything."

"I wasn't going to pry!" Still, Sabo wishes internally that things weren't so awkward and quiet between them. Outside, it's started to rain, and drops tap and ping off the metal above their heads. "I was just wondering..."

Ace looks up at him for a second before sighing and saying, "Okay, okay, quit shooting me the 'kicked puppy' look, you prick. I've got a kid brother. Happy?"

Instead of commenting indignantly on how he is in no way a kicked puppy, nor did he resemble one, Sabo nods. "It's nice of you," he says awkwardly after a moment. "To do gang work just to support him."

"It's not like a noble would be able to understand caring about people, though," Ace says in a biting tone. "Stop talking so much. God, why the fuck haven't I killed you yet?"

Pushing back his hurt, Sabo leans back, trying to ignore the pricking in his eyes. He's being a baby, he knows, but he can't help it. It's  _frustrating_. To be shot at and tear gassed, to go to every single rally in the city, to fight so hard for equality that  _your own parents hate you_... and then for people to still think that you don't care. Sabo does care. He knows all too well that he does. Possibly even too much. It's not like Ace will ever know or care about that, though.

"If you work for a gang, then I guess you live within the city limits, right?" Sabo asks, just to get a conversation started. Ace latches onto it with a scowl.

"What, you thought I lived on the Stacks, huh? Typical noble. I live in the grey district, asshole. I bet you think all of us live on the Stacks, huh? I bet you've never even been near them. It must be so fun to go to bed every night, knowing that everything bad in this city is locked up on the big, bad Sta-"

"I live on the Stacks," Sabo says.

Ace shuts his mouth.

"Oh," he says simply. "I- sorry, I guess."

"Yeah," Sabo replies neutrally, regaining some of his confidence. "That's what most people say when you tell them that."

Ace ducks his head, looking - if it's even possible - slightly ashamed. The rain picks up, hammering a faint rhythm on the metal. Quickly, quicker than Sabo realises, it gets colder. Before he knows it, he's shivering. To distract himself from the chill, or maybe just to break the awkward silence, Sabo speaks again.

"Tell m-me about your brother," he says through chattering teeth. A drop of rain seeps through a slit in the metal above and into his hair, running through it and down his neck. He yearns for his sweatshirt, thin t-shirt doing nothing to keep him warm, but doesn't ask for it.

Perhaps Ace feels bad, or perhaps he wants to break the silence too, because he complies. Staring up at the metal ceiling four feet above him, he says, "Where do I begin? Well... He's a bit of a wild card, I guess." His words come slow and cautious, but they come anyway, and that's what matters to Sabo.

"How s-so?"

"Hates school, hates teachers - hell, it feels like he hates  _me_  half the time. He's too innocent for his own damn good."

Sabo curls his arms around himself. "How old is he?"

Ace only hesitates for a second before answering, "Fourteen. He's gonna be fifteen next May, and his testing is the year after that, and... I don't know if he's gonna pass, or if he ain't ready, or if I've not done enough to help or..." He shakes his head. "This is stupid."

Sabo hums. "No, it's not stupid. You're worried about your family, it's natural."

Covering his face with his arm, Ace tucks his free wing around himself and breathes, "What the fuck am I doing, talking to one of them.

Sabo hears him clearly but says nothing, swiping a little blood from the corner of his lip as the rain falling into his hair speeds up its pace into a steady stream. The trembles intensify until they rack his whole body and his breath leaves him in audible stutters.

Eventually, he says, "I get that you hate me but can we just try to get along for now? You don't have to stop yourself from talking just because I'm a human."

Ace leans back into the blonde teen's sweatshirt, all his bluster back in place. "Alright, fine. Tell me about yourself then, chatty. You got anybody living with you out on the Stacks? A girl or somethin'?"

"Not really. I've been alone since I left my family." Sabo considers. "I've got a friend called Koala who lives lower on my Stack, and she's alright."

Ace snorts. It's obvious that he's trying to make things less tense, at least, and Sabo appreciates that. "A 'friend', sure." Sabo can hear the fake roughness in his voice and cringes slightly. "You sure you two aren't-"

"She's an 'I'," Sabo says quickly, and Ace's mouth snaps shut. "And I'm not into- not into that side of it, if you get what I mean."

"Ah. That's- that's-"

"Yeah."

Obviously desperate for a change of subject (Sabo almost feels bad for him), Ace asks, "You have a friend who's an I? I didnt think they existed anymore."

"There are still a f-few here and there," Sabo forces through his chattering teeth, "Especially out on the Stacks. Informal w-work mostly, like me. Though it's harder for them."

"Naturally."

"Hey, tell m-me more about your brother."

Ace sighs, but a small smile worms its way onto his face. "We're not biological brothers, but we're still related in everything that matters. Luffy's always been a weird kid. He was born to a family of Fae out in the wilds and when he was seven, he injured his right wing and it had to be amputed. After that, his family didn't exactly want him so he ended up with me."

"A F-Fae w-with one wing?" Sabo winces sympathetically. "That must've been tough for him."

"Yeah, he's... He's one of a kind." Ace pears upwards, into one of the slits in the metal above them. The sky through it is getting darker. "I promised him I'd be home tonight..."

"Crap." Sabo raises his voice and yells again, but it come out even quieter than before. "We should get out of here as soon as we can." He tries to push upwards on the metal again, with no success.

Ace raises an eyebrow. "What changed?"

"He's fourteen, right?" Sabo shivers. "I just don't really like the idea of a fourteen-year old being alone in the grey district, that's all."

"Huh." Shooting Sabo a calculative look, Ace asks, "When they come... are you going to tell them why we were under the bridge?"

Sabo laughs. "So long as you don't try to kidnap me again, I think we're cool. It's great that you want to protect your brother. If he relies on you, I don't want to get in the way of that."

"...You're not too awful," Ace says slowly.

"You're welcome."

Sabo raises his voice and this time, Ace joins him. They yell together for what feels like hours, calling for help, begging for anybody to come along and help.

And after what feels like hours, somebody finally does.

* * *

_'Take care of your brother, Ace. See you.'_

Sabo's last words to him ringing in his words, Ace pelts up the road towards the apartment building, feet crashing through deep puddles of murky rainwater. It falls dark from the clouds, staining everything light brown. Visibly filled with ash, it's probably undrinkable. The street is dark and Ace is alone as he crosses it, wing over his head to protect him from the rain as the other, injured by the collapse of the bridge, hangs limply by his side.

It's almost 0300 now. By the time they were rescued from the rubble, Sabo was so cold that his lips and cheeks were colourless. Ace pulled the other teen's sweatshirt over his blonde head, shoved his phone number into his hand and pushed him off in the direction of the Stacks, some tiny part of him rebelling against the sight as he watched Sabo's skinny, soaked back disappear into the dark alone. As he ran here - it was too late for trains to be running - Ace did his best to shove Sabo from his mind.

And now here he stands, looking up at his apartment door. His legs carried him here on autopilot. Both praying for Luffy to be here and praying for the opposite, Ace inserts his key into the lock and turns the doornob.

The door has barely closed behind him when Luffy stumbles in from the lounge, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "Ace? Where have you been? What-"

Ace flicks on the hallway light and his entire bloodied, soaked, freezing form comes into view. Luffy barely gets a glance at him before flying into action. Ace has barely had time to breathe before he's sitting at the kitchen table, a towel thrown haphazardly onto his head, Luffy opening a cupboard across the room and pulling out a carton of water and a medium-sized mac.

"L-Luffy? Wha-"

"Shut up, you're hurt!" Ace can't see Luffy's face, but his voice is distraught.

Movements sluggish, Ace reaches up and pulls the towel off his head, using it to towel down his soaking wet hair and scrub the water from his face. When he pulls it away, there's a glass of water in front of him and Luffy is punching a number into the microwave, already having put the mac-ration inside.

"Luffy, no!" Ace darts across the room and turns off the microwave at the wall before it can be switched on, heart pounding. "You know how much heat power costs! Why would you do that?!"

"You're shaking! And bleeding, and covered in water and-" Luffy turns to look up at Ace. His eyes are fierce and a little too bright, shining with unshed tears. "And I don't know what to do but you need to get warm! At least let me do this!"

Pointedly, Ace pulls the plug out of the wall and drops it. "No. Luffy, I'll be okay-"

With a shuddering gasp, Luffy rushes forwards and throws his arms around Ace's soaking torso, freezing him in place. He can feel the younger teen shaking, even more than he is, and cautiously returns the hug as the trembles intensify.

"I-I thought you were d-dead...!' Luffy hiccups into his chest. "You're never late back from a job, never e-ever, and I didn't know what to think - I went out to look for you and you didn't come, and I-"

"Hey, hey, don't- don't cry-" Ace tries, hug more firm now. He puts a hand on his younger brother's hair, and it's damp beneath his fingers. "Please don't cry, Luffy, I'm okay. I'm alright."

Sniffing, Luffy pulls away and wipes his nose. He shoots Ace a reproachful look. "If you're okay, then why's your shoulder bleeding?"

It's as if the words are a trigger - pain slams into Ace like a battering ram and he stumbles slightly. Immediately Luffy is there, supporting him under the arms until he reaches the couch. Ace falls against it with a small groan.

"...What happened to your wing?" Luffy's voice is small, now.

"Got trapped under something. 'M okay," Ace slurs.

After a few seconds, something cold is pressed against his lips and he drinks thankfully, trying to ignore the stale tang that fills the water. He doesn't open his eyes, allowing Luffy to pour the contents of what feels like a whole mac-ration into his hand and eating dutifully. The hardness of the dried wheat and the rough, sandy nutrient powder feel horrible in his mouth but he forces them down, ignoring the protests of his gag reflex. Stomach sated, he drinks a little more and then waits, knowing what's coming.

After what feels like a few minutes, when Ace is barely clinging to wakefulness, Luffy clambers onto the couch beside him and tucks himself against his chest, curled up, single small wing wrapping around himself. Ace cocoons them both in his own huge wing, hugging the smaller boy, knowing that neither of them will sleep until Luffy's small sobs finally tail off.

"I'm sorry, Ace," Luffy finally whispers into the dark. "I wish I was stronger..."

"You're fourteen. It's not your job to be strong," Ace replies softly.

"If I was, then maybe you wouldn't-" The teen sniffs. "Maybe you wouldn't get hurt all the time 'n stuff. And I could do all that stuff and you could go to school, 'cause you want to so much."

Ace sighs. "Go to sleep, Luffy."

Luffy drops off quickly, exhausted from the force of his emotion, but it takes a long time for Ace to eventually slip into oblivion. When he does, he dreams of colourless lips and blue eyes.

* * *

_'Stay warm, get out of here! Good luck out on the Stacks!'_

Far away, outside of the city limits, Sabo clambers through his window. Every inch of him, from his skin to his burning chest, feels painfully cold. He latches the window, just as he does every night, and tries to tug off his sweatshirt - his hands are shaking too violently. He attempts to steady them against the wall. His breathing comes too quickly, heart pounding like a drum. Ace's blood still stains his hands even through the rainwater.

When his hands finally stop shaking, Sabo pulls off his sweatshirt and shirt, slipping into the only other hoodie that he owns. It's far too large and threadbare, but it'll do. He has to roll the sleeves up multiple times just to be able to use his hands, and occupies himself pulling them up as he tries to slow his frantic breathing. He hates climbing up here in the rain; there's a constant risk of falling, an ever-present fear of losing your footing on the slippery metal.

Sabo shakes his dripping hair out and rubs his hands together to get some kind of warmth back into them. Stumbling into the main room, he pulls his hood up and yanks on the string until the dim, grimy room around him is obscured by fabric. The shivers still have yet to completely fade. He knows that he should probably eat but the idea of a dry, cold mac and a cup of dirty water doesn't sound appealing in the slightest, and he can't afford to waste it.

His skin feels numb now. Empty stomach aching, Sabo pulls the sleeves of his sweatshirt up over his hands, curls up on the couch and yanks the oversized item of clothing over his legs, slightly comforted by the feeling of being covered fully by the hoodie. Like this, he can trick himself into thinking that he's warm.

As he drifts off to sleep, head tucked against his knees, Sabo's thoughts drift to Ace. The anger in his grey eyes, and the hint of worry that was in his eyes as he pulled Sabo's sweatshirt over his head and shoved his number into his hand. He can still feel the damp paper scrunched up in his hand but doesn't look at it, afraid that the numbers might have smudged in the rain.

When he finally gets to sleep, however, he doesn't dream. For that, he's thankful.


	4. Hopeful Ones

 

When the morning finally rolls around, it takes Luffy almost ten minutes to fully extract himself from Ace's grasp. When he finally does, he finds himself standing in the centre of their dimly-lit lounge with no idea what to do next. He can feel the puffiness of his eyes from last night and knows that they must be bloodshot. Glancing down at Ace, he can see that he looks pale and drawn in the grey light seeping through the window and decides to leave him to sleep.

Sleepily, Luffy pads from the lounge into the tiny kitchen, picking his mobile up with cold fingers and flipping it open. It's harder than ever to get working phones at all nowadays. He was lucky that it... fell out of the pocket of a passing noble, right into his hand.

When Ace first heard that story, he laughed so hard he almost fell off the couch. Nowadays, he doesn't laugh much about anything at all.

The screen displays fifty-three missed calls and almost sixty texts, and Luffy remembers with a gasp that last night - at 0200, in the throes of panic about his brother - he called Zoro and left a frantic, almost incoherent message. There are calls from almost all of Luffy's friends, and most of the texts are from Zoro and Nami. The most recent ones, sent barely ten minutes ago, are threatening to come over there and make sure he's alright.

Quickly, keeping an eye on the front door just in case they really do come knocking, Luffy punches in Zoro's number. The sixteen-year old answers on the first ring.

"Luffy! Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He sounds somewhere between pissed and worried.

"I'm okay, I'm okay, really," Luffy replies, trying to keep his voice strong. He winces when it comes out scratchy and thick, like he's been crying.

"Why don't I believe that?" Nami's voice says distantly. There are small noises of agreement in the background.

Blanching at the realisation that he's on speaker, Luffy thinks fast. "Look, I'll be over at the den in, like, ten minutes tops, okay? I promise I'm alright."

"Alright..." Zoro says dubiously. "Take care of yourself."

"I know, I know," Luffy says, though not without fondness in his voice. "See you soon, guys!"

There's a chorus of goodbyes before Luffy flicks his phone shut. He glances up at the wall. 0530 - he's got three hours until school starts, if he even goes at all. Plenty of time to convince his gang that he's alright. He puts on his jacket, wing wrapping around himself to keep out the cold, and scribbles out a quick note to Ace that he leaves on the kitchen table-

' _Went to school early got a test today!_  
Hope youre okay  
L'

Ace can't read very well, but hopefully Luffy's message is vaguely understandable. With a small sigh, the fourteen-year old wanders back into the lounge and gives Ace a quick hug. The elder doesn't stir.

Outside, the world is made up of thick, glittering whites and silvers that almost manage to cover up the ash filling the air. It's a cold enough day that frost coats everything, but that means that the atmosphere is more open than usual, and the air is so thick with settling dust that Luffy covers his mouth with his sleeve to breathe properly, coughing harshly. It's only been a few hours since the streets were completely empty but now, in the slowly growing grey light, people are already shoving past one another to get out of the district, scarves over their mouths, wings curled tightly around themselves.

Luffy joins the flood of people heading downtown but diverges only a few minutes later, already shivering in the crisp December morning, slipping down a sidestreet before clambering up into a window. The room inside is chilly due to the window being wide open, and the only occupant only spares Luffy one sharp glance before letting him past.

"Thanks, Peel!" Luffy says cheerfully, now perching in the ledge of the window opposite, ready to slip across the rope bridge that stretches from it across the street.

"It's Pell," the man says, in a manner that suggests that he's had to do this multiple times.

"That's what I said!"

Grinning, he clambers onto the rope bridge and climbs across as quickly as he can, still breathing through his sleeve. In the next building it's just as bare as the previous, and Vivi smiles at him from a stove across the room, only stopping what she's doing to tell him to close the window before the ash gets in.

"Ah, sorry, Vivi!" Luffy takes a moment to bask in the heat. "It's so warm in here..."

Vivi offers him a small spoonful of the stew she's making but doesn't allow him to have anymore. "I've got to take it to the high district to sell, Luffy! You know how expensive ingredients are!"

"Yeah, sorry, sorry!" Luffy laughs, before opening the window across the room. There's another rickety footbridge stretching across to the next building, and he waves goodbye to Vivi as he balances on the first step, making sure to close the misty window behind him.

The next building is empty, the window locked, and it only takes a few minutes for Luffy to pick the lock with a hairpin. He doesn't linger in this room.

The next room is the last one he has to pass through, and this one is full of half-drunk, cheerful looking men (and one large, red-haired woman). They all wave to him and laugh as he climbs in, and he steps around a pile of vomit and what looks like a dead body just to get to the other window, laughing all the while.

"Hey, Dadan!" he calls over the heads of the men.

"Ah, get out already, damn brat," she grumbles, half-concealed by cigarette smoke. "Same thing every damn morning..."

And, finally, Luffy gets onto the last footbridge. This one is less sturdy than the others, more well used, but he's so used to crossing it that he darts across in two seconds flat. The window is closed but unlocked and it opens onto a wide, cluttered, homely-looking room that Luffy knows well. He climbs through and closes it behind him, taking in the room for a moment as the cold begins to seep from his bones.

The den. It's been something of a refuge for Luffy for the last two years, and looks just as lived-in and shabby as always. There are six couches crammed into the room, pressed up against each other so tightly that they cover the entire left side of the room, ripped and grimy with springs protruding from tears in their fabric. The walls are plastered with old-world posters advertising bands that nobody listens to anymore; Pink Floyd, Jim Morrison and the Doors, the Animals, the Beatles. Their colours are faded but still there, and brighter than anything else in the grey district.

Hammocks are strung up across the room, from the pipe-riddled ceiling, and the floor is covered with pieces of newspage, assorted blankets and more stolen pillows then the room truly needs. There are random nicknacks strewn everywhere; a homemade slingshot, an empty mac packet, three dried-out conkers that must have come from the city gardens, three rusted golden earrings, a long wooden staff, a nuclear protocol booklet.

It feels like home.

"Luffy!"

Luffy's head snaps up and he beams widely, drinking in the sight of his second family clustered in the doorway. "Everyone!"

Zoro reaches him first, hands landing on his shoulders. His dull, green wings twitch with worry. The amount that Luffy was crying must be clear to see on his face by the level of worry on all of their faces, and he tries to widen his smile.

"What happened to you?!" Nami asks, "There's blood on your cheek!"

"Ah, there is?" Luffy reaches up to scrub it away. "Don't worry, it's not mine."

A large hand lands on Luffy's head and he looks up, meeting Franky's eyes and smiling up at him even as he's herded onto a couch. "Tell us what happened, bro!" Frank says, more seriously than usual.

Sitting down on the couch, Luffy finds himself sandwiched between Usopp and Nami, the former looking at him worriedly and the latter attempting to wipe away the blood on his face. The others in the group linger close too, and Luffy finds himself both touched and saddened by how worried they must have been.

"Okay, well, basically..." Sighing, Luffy pushes his hat down onto his head. "It was my brother."

"What? Ace?" Zoro looks slightly caught off-guard, kneeling in front of Luffy. "What did he do?"

"He's not the reason you're bleeding, right?!" Usopp asks, nervously.

"If he did anything..."

"Luffy-san, we understand that you love your brother, but-"

"Guys, stop, stop! Ace didn't hit me - he'd never do that." Luffy swats Nami's hand away. "He was meant to be back from his job by 2300, but it got to 0100 and he still wasn't home... he's never been late back from a job and I thought he was hurt, so I panicked and looked everywhere."

From beside Usopp, Robin sucks in a sharp breath. "Luffy, he's not..."

"No, no, he's okay," Luffy says hurriedly. "He came in just after 0300, but he was hurt real bad and I had to patch him up and use the last mac we had to feed him and there's not much water left, either - he didn't bring anything last night and we've used all of our reserves, I just dunno what to do now - and his shoulder got all bloody and stuff, and I think he broke his wing-"

"Luffy, calm down."

The commanding, collected edge to Zoro's voice shuts Luffy up and for a second, the only sound in the room being his panicked breathing. Nobody speaks for a minute, but even though Luffy doesn't look up, he can feel their concern burning into him.

"Sorry," he breathes finally, "I'm just... tired. Went to sleep at 0300."

"Okay." This time it's Sanji who speaks. He's been hanging back until now, arms crossed and suspicion clear on his face, but now he steps forward. "Get some sleep, Luffy. We can talk later, okay?"

Luffy doesn't have the energy to argue, and when Usopp pushes him back onto the broken old couch he melts against it. His friends step back, but he can sense the hovering nearby and opens his eyes only to smile sleepily at them, taking in the sight of them all once again. Zoro, ruffled and angry and concerned. Nami, red tattoo burning as brightly as her hair against her collarbone. Usopp, skinny, clumsy and dirty. Sanji, clothes and hair ashy, bare shoulders tight and filled with tension. Robin, forehead pulled tight with characteristic thoughtfulness. Franky, metal arm glinting in the dim, grey light. Brook, emaciated but still holding an air of cheerfulness.

"Thank you, everyone..." he slurs.

"Yeah, yeah," Nami says, obviously holding back a smile. "Get some sleep, Cap'."

Luffy sees Zoro's face harden with something he hasn't seen there in a long time. Then, nothing.

\----

Sabo hits the ground hard, rolling to get out of the way of a stream of bullets. His ears ring as he slams to a stop, heart pounding as the wall he hides behind is sprayed with shells. Nobody pursues him and, pulse thundering through his ears, he sprints to more secure cover behind Stack 3. He's not the shooter's target; rather, he was simply caught in the crossfire. It doesn't make the feeling of bullets hitting the ground an inch from your head any less terrifying, though.

But at the end of the day, he's used to it. This is the Stacks, after all, and if there's one thing the people here are not it's considerate. Standing cautiously, still half-crouched, Sabo listens for the sounds of the ensuing shootout.

Silence. One of them (or both of them) is dead.

Shootouts aren't uncommon on the Stacks - quite the opposite - but they never fail to shake Sabo up. Especially when he gets caught in the middle of them. Adrenaline lingering like an unpleasant vice in his throat, he stumbles the rest of the way towards the city limits, trying to calm his screaming heart. Pain crunches through his shoulder from where he landed on it, thumping a thick rhythm through his bones.

Against his will, Sabo's thoughts turn to Ace. Has he ever shot somebody? There's no way he hasn't, being a part of a gang as he is. Has he ever been shot? Sabo's mind rebels against the idea, even though he knows that it's likely.

Trying to shake the thought of Ace from his mind, Sabo keeps his head down. As it always does, the grey district is approaching quickly, a dull, squat mass of buildings and slums in the distance. It's early, and the sun is just peaking over the horizon - not that it's visible. The grey-white sky lights up the frost all around, covering the road and the people alike, but there's something harsh about the light that's almost unsettling. The winter landscape is tainted by ash, so thick that Sabo's chest is tight, and in no way beautiful.

Trying to soothe his jittery nerves, Sabo pushes Ace from his thoughts and walks onwards. The grey district grows like a jungle around him, mismatched buildings pushed up against each other like rotting teeth, and suddenly every head of black hair he sees is suddenly Ace; every voice he hears is the one that sent him off late last night.

Why can't he stop thinking about him?

Sabo once again pretends not to notice the grey gaze he can feel on his back from the green-haired Fae in the alleyway.

\----

Zoro clambers through the window into the den, stamping frost off his boots and only quieting down when Nami gestures to their sleeping youngest member on the couch. Putting his hands up in mock surrender, he toes off his boots and pads through the den, picking his way through a pile of broken metal parts on the floor absentmindedly. Luffy is still passed out, curled up against the cushions, the frame of the skinny fourteen-year old looking even smaller than usual.

"Has he woken at all?" Zoro asks Nami softly. The rest of the group are hanging around - Usopp and Sanji are talking in the kitchen, Robin is probably somewhere around here, Franky is toying with a metal contraption across the room - and the worry in the air is tangible.

"No, not yet," Nami replies. She leans back against the wall, and Zoro echoes her movement. "Did you see Ace?"

"Nope, not at all. Just the same people as every day."

Nami lowers her voice. "The noble from the Stacks, too?"

"That's the weird part. You know this is the first time Ace has gotten injured on a job in forever, apparently, and he came home covered in blood?" Zoro lowers his voice further, until it's close to a whisper. "The noble kid has bloodstains on his hands."

Nami sucks in a sharp breath. "You think they're connected?"

Zoro shrugs, face impassive. "I mean, we've been watching the guy for two years now, ever since the fire on Bluetown estate. He goes to every single rally in the city, he's tied up with some unsavoury people - fuck, look at what happened with Trafalgar Law and that family - and the debates hardly make him any less strange. He started at twelve, doesn't that seem unusual? It's hard not to be suspicious."

"Let's..." Nami makes a frustrated noise. "Let's just not jump to conclusions too quickly. Keep watching him, keep waiting for him to slip up. It'll happen eventually."

"If you're sure," Zoro replies, in a voice that says clearly that he doesn't believe her. Turning away, he paces across the room towards the door that leads to the roof. The strawhats only own the upper part of the building (no more than four rooms, as the lower half is occupied by a cramped family of twelve), but at least they've got access to the roof. "I've got my cell on me; text me when he wakes up?"

"Got it," Nami replies. "See you, Zoro."

"Bye, bye."

As the door closes behind Zoro, Usopp stumbles into the room. "Did I just hear Zoro in here?"

"Yeah, he just came to report. No Ace. The noble from the Stacks has got blood on his hands, literally. We think it might have something to do with what happened last night," Nami says shortly.

Usopp shifts, uneasy. "It's still kinda creepy, how you guys watch him every day..."

"He's not the only one," Nami dismisses, rubbing at her tattoo. "We've gotta keep eyes on anybody who could be suspicious if we wanna get into gang work someday."

"Okay..." Usopp says dubiously. "Just- well, alright, but I still think it's weird!"

"You're not one to talk about weird, dipshit!"

Usopp crosses his arms indignantly but doesn't continue the argument, eyes instead landing on Luffy. Even as he watches him, the younger makes a small noise in the back of his throat and rolls over, kneading the pillow he's lying on. There's still a little bit of blood on his cheek.

"You didn't really reckon it was Ace, did you...?"

Sighing, Nami turn her gaze away from Luffy. "Honestly? No, I didn't. I'm the only one here who's actually met the guy, and it's pretty obvious just by looking at them; he'd never hurt Luffy. They care about one another a lot."

"What's Ace like, anyway? I mean, I know he's the older one and Luffy gets frustrated at him a lot, but that's about it."

"He's Fae, like Luffy. Huge wings, the brightest that I've ever seen." Nami hesitates. "It's... hard to describe him, really. He talks just like Luffy, like somebody from the grey district, and they look alike - but that's about it. Ace is... polite, but kind of not at the same time, if that makes any sense. When you're with him..." Nami chuckles, a sad sound. "It's kind of like you always want to watch your back, just in case. He's dangerous, and people know it."

Usopp shudders. "Scary guy..."

"Yeah, that's the way I'd put it."

"Mphh...guys?"

Luffy's muffled voice breaks the two sixteen-year olds out of their conversation. They glance over at him again. A bottle cap in his wayward hair, marked with a brand that no longer exists, the young Fae sits up with a wide yawn.

"What a' you talking about?" he slurs sleepily.

"Ah, nothing, nothing, Cap'!" Usopp says nervously. "Nami just wanted to hear some of the Great Mercenary Usopp's stories!"

"Really?!"

Nami smacks Usopp hard over the back of the head. "Ignore him, Luffy. How are you feeling now?"

Examining himself, it takes a minute for Luffy to decide that he's alright before he nods. He flashes a grin and says, "Yeah, a lot better! I'm not as cold now..." His head swings from one side to the other. "Where're the others?"

"Hey, Luffy-bro!" Franky calls from across the room, still tinkering with parts for his arm.

"Took you long enough to wake, Cap," Sanji's dry voice echoes from the kitchen.

Robin's soft tone echoes from another room somewhere, "Good morning, Luffy."

Obviously still a little disorientated, Luffy rubs his eyes and whines, "You're all everywhere."

"Eloquent," quips Nami. "Anyway, where did you tell Ace you were today? It's nearly 1000, won't he be awake by now?"

"Ah, don't worry! I told him I'm in school!"

At that very moment, Luffy's mobile rings in his pocket.

All movement in the room freezes. Looking like a man preparing for death, Luffy reaches into his jacket and slowly brings out his phone. He, Nami and Usopp all stare at it for a moment before it vibrates again and they all jump.

Taking a deep breath, Luffy answers the call.

"Hello...?"

"Luffy!" Ace's tinny voice stretches through the room like a foghorn. From the doorway, Sanji winces. "Thank god, you actually answered for once..."

Luffy swallows. "Heh, sorry, I just..."

"Where are you?!"

"I'm... I'm in school...?"

"Luffy, it's Sunday," Ace says in a deadpan voice. "Where. Are. You."

Luffy covers up the microphone and curses, glancing around at the others. "What do I say?!" he hisses.

"I dunno, don't just leave it!" Usopp stage-whispers back.

"I-" Luffy runs his hand back and forth over the microphone rapidly. "I- Ace- breaking up- so- can't hear-"

He presses the red button on the screen and the entire room relaxes in unison as the call ends. Sanji steps in further, allowing Robin, Zoro and Brook to walk in behind him. All of them look somewhere between curious and worried.

"Shit," Luffy whispers.

Then, so quickly that Nami flinches, he stands up.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I really gotta go - Ace'll probably explode if he thinks I'm out here alone - but thank you for letting me stay out here with you, I'll try to sneak out tonight-"

"Luffy-san, wait!" Brook calls; it's too late, as the fourteen-year old is already perched in the window frame.

He glances over his shoulder, smiles at the group and says, "Don't worry!"

Before anybody else can protest, Luffy jumps out of the window and disappears into the ash and cold.

And just like that he's gone - Zoro closes the window behind him, eyes hard, and the rest of the group dissolve into worried murmurs. Sanji drifts back towards the kitchen, lighting a cigarette that in itself must have been hard to come by. Brook goes back to his violin and Robin follows, agreeing to turn the pages of his sheet music for him. Nami and Usopp trail off after Sanji. Franky scoops up his parts and waves at Zoro over his shoulder, slouching out of the room.

"Hey, Zoro," Nami suddenly calls, walking back into the room for a moment, "Tell Chopper that we said hi when you go home!"

He rolls his eyes. "You've never even met the kid, why do you always seem to care so much?"

"He's, like, twelve!" Usopp defends from behind Nami. "Forgive us for wanting him to join the group already!"

When Zoro shoots him a dark look, he squeaks and pelts away from the doorway like a man possessed, leaving just Nami and the swordsman.

"Look," Zoro says through gritted teeth, "Chopper's fine. He doesn't need you guys worrying about him, he's got me for that."

"Have you still not got enough for the hospital fees?" Nami asks in a soft voice, as if she didn't hear him.

"No," Zoro replies shortly. "Stop fretting about him. He's a tough kid, he'll be fine. We've got another kid on our hands anyway, so for now let's just worry about Cap. Leave Chopper to me."

"Alright, alright, I give," Nam relents. "Just tell him that I said hi, and that we're all thinking about him."

"Aye, Aye."

After hovering for a moment in the doorway, Nami turns and leaves, letting the door snap shut behind her. Zoro lingers at the window, appearing out into the frost. It's too late - Luffy is long gone.

It's been like this for a long time.

When they're in the den, it's easy for the group to forget what's going on outside. That's the way it's always been. The area officially belongs to Brook but in reality it's a home to all eight of them, misfits who met through nothing more than chance. Most are Fae - naturally, considering the den's location - but within the group itself, there are misfits. Luffy, with his single wing, the youngest by two years. Zoro himself, a dropout who keeps his personal life to his chest. Usopp, quick and wary from years on the streets; Nami, an I who breaks the law by hiding her tattoo; Robin, a librarian originally from the wilds; Franky with his metal arm and extensive history with street gangs; even Brook is unusual, emaciated and occasionally clammy about his past, the manifestation of a kind but slightly insane grandfather.

They're hardly a family, but Zoro likes to think that they're pretty close.

In his pocket, Zoro's phone vibrates and he slips it out. On the screen is a single text message that still manages to make him smile.

{ **Cap** }: _thank u for today ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Ly guys_

Zoro thinks for a moment about how to reply.

{ **Moss** }: _good luck with your brother, come back when you can_.

As a second thought, because he knows that it'll make Luffy smile, Zoro adds;

{ **Moss** }: _Chopper says hi._

It's not true, of course; Chopper has never even met Luffy. It's sure to make him happy, however, and with that, Zoro is content.

His phone buzzes again and Zoro flicks it open, preparing for a text back from Luffy. The name that lights up the screen is different this time, however, and his brow furrows with concern.

{ **Chopper** } _: It happened again._

Zoro types back so quickly that he makes half a million typos, but doesn't have the time to care. The window is already open before his cell is even back in his pocket.

{ **Zoro** }: _Ill be righjt there stau calm_

{ **Zoro** }: _domt make noise, we donr want to wake him_

Just as Zoro is closing the window behind him, throat already thick with ash, Robin enters the room. They meet eyes through the misty window pane but after a few quick seconds, Zoro turns away, the image of her unsmiling face clear in his mind.

As he runs across the footbridge, his phone buzzes one more time.

And this time, it's the one thing he least wanted to see.

Zoro's been getting texts from this stranger for nearly a year. He's given up on trying to interpret them; he even had Franky try to trace them once, and that came up blank. He's used to them by now, but they still never fail to mess with his head.

The words blink upwards from the bright screen and Zoro puffs out an annoyed huff, covering his mouth with the neck of his sweatshirt. No matter what he does, the words always give him the chills.

He slips his phone into his pocket and carries on running, through house after house, slipping into the familiar routine without really feeling it. The words ring through his mind freely, burned into his irises.

{ **Unknown number** }: _THERE IS A TRAITOR_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry but I'm v busy right now, so I won't be able to reply to comments until Wednesday of next week. I hope you don't mind! I am reading all comments though, and I absolutely love them and appreciate all the love for this fic so far! It means so so much to me!


	5. Human

**_Spring_ **

Ace sighs and brushes a little ash from his hair, fingering the barrel of his gun absently. He asks himself why he's still here and can come up with no good answer. The deed is done. Soon, the police will be here. The corpse of the retired lawyer lies on the floor at his feet, recognisable even though the back of his head has been blown out. Smoke curls from his mouth. The remnants of surprise linger on his face. His blood, speckled with pieces of shattered skull, runs along the polished wooden boards beneath him.

Surely, somebody has heard by now. Silencers quiet the sound a pistol makes, of course, but it's never truly silent. And god knows there are eyes everywhere in this part of town.

But still the police don't come, and still Ace doesn't move. The barrel of the gun feels cold now, even though it was hot when he shot the man. Once to the back of the head. Clean and simple. Just another job.

So why can't he move?

His phone 'bleep's in his pocket, loud in the silence. When Ace pulls it out, the screen is so bright that he's afraid that somebody will see it in the darkness. Paranoia grips him for a second and he turns the screen around, shining the light into the shadowy room, sure that he's being watched.

He's entirely alone.

Heart beating fast, Ace turns the phone back towards him and adjusts the brightness so that it's as low as it will go. The phone he has is better than most, made near the end of the old-world, and the screen is wide and flat, nothing like the flip-open phones that most have.

A text from Luffy. Ace smiles at the sight of it and then smiles wider when he reads the words themselves, momentarily forgetting the gun in his hand, the blood on his shoes.

{ **01:46AM**  -  **L** }:  _gonna be out later tonight, spending time with friends, left a mac 4 you! ! ! B careful, missu ace!:D_

{ **01:47AM - Ace** }:  _stop trieing to use old-world text talk, it dont sute you. Miss you to_

The text goes through after a few seconds even though the connection here (well, through the entire city) is crap. [ **L is typing** ] appears on the screen for a second, before an emoticon of a middle finger blinks to life in the dark.

Laughing silently, now with the will to move again, Ace buttons his phone into the inside pocket of his jacket and stands. With careful precision he wipes the barrel on his trousers, making sure not to leave fingerprints on the metal even though he knows for sure that his own prints aren't on any database in the world. Better safe than sorry.

As per orders, he leaves the gun on the lawyer's bloody chest, as well as a pre-printed note. He doesn't bother to read it. Ace used to be curious about people's motives, back when he was just a fourteen-year old who was painfully new to the business, but now he feels numb to it all. Weathered and hardened by the storm of cruelty that rules this city. Now he never asks, just takes the money that boss offers and does the deed. It's easier that way.

Ace slips quietly out of the window, landing as gracefully as a cat on the ground below. The high district is quiet, eerily so. It always is. Not a single Fae lives here, and they never have; most likely they never will. If somebody saw him here, Ace would be sent to the wilds before he could protest. Before the sun rose.

Keeping his wide wings tucked in tightly, Ace decides to stay cautious. He stays away from the roofs, keeping to the streets, moving carefully. Even though it probably wouldn't attract much attention, he's glad when his phone doesn't flash an alert again.

It doesn't take long to get back to the base. Ace knows the way well - it's been imprinted into his subconsciousness since the very first day, when Burgess showed him the best way to get here without running into the police. The street is dark and utterly silent, and it isn't surprising considering how late it is. Ace prays silently that the base is empty, even though he knows that it probably isn't the case, as he unlocks the rusted brass gate and steps into the mottled alley. At the end of the small passage is a heavy metal door, set into a brick wall.

The Blackbeards' base.

Keeping his face carefully blank, Ace strides across the alleyway and pushes the door. Unlocked; a cocky thing to do, but typical of the Blackbeard gang. Inside, it's so bright that it takes Ace's eyes a few seconds to adjust, and his heart sinks when they do.

"Ace!" A bellowing, grating laugh crashes on the teen's ears. "Hey, men, the kid's back!"

Laughter and jeers in equal measure break out through the room. Ace's eyes adjust and he finds himself blinking at a familiar tavern - whitewashed walls and wooden chairs, the oak floor so dirty that it's close to black in colour, the pale walls ashy. The room is hot and stuffy and claustrophobic, filled with rowdy men and the smell of overcooked mac rations. Against his will, Ace feels his empty stomach growl and he yearns to be back at his apartment, eating with Luffy.

"Ace, get over here!"

Blackbeard. His commanding voice stretches over the crowd, filled with the wet scratchiness that tells Ace that he's speaking through a mouthful of food. Holding back a shudder, Ace clears his face of emotion and pushes through the crowd - stepping over an outstretched leg, dodging around a man brandishing a pistol, sliding around a fallen chair and edging around a sprawled-out body. Movement fills every part of his vision, overwhelming in its speed and intensity, and in a passing thought, Ace wonders if Luffy would be better equipped to deal with this environment than he.

"Boss," he says flatly, reaching the makeshift throne upon which Blackbeard sits and not looking up. "The job's done."

"That's good!"

Specks of pie spray over Ace as Blackbeard speaks and he grits his teeth, glancing up through his bangs. The man looks the same as he always does. Greyish age spots dot his chin, creeping beneath his bristly beard. He's grinning broadly, and the pie that stains his teeth makes the smile look bloody and grotesque. Every part of him seems simply too large to be allowed, spilling over the sides of his chair, broad, meaty shoulders blocking out the light from Ace's face. The black wings on his back are stubby and close to featherless, the stark opposite of Ace's.

He's disgusting - Ace hates him...but he still bows his head to him.

"That's good..." Blackbeard repeats, this time more contemplatively. He leans forwards. As one, the whole tavern seems to quiet down slightly. "You know what you are, Ace?"

"What, Boss?" Voice flat. Ace tries not to clench his fists.

"You're reliable. You're  _goddamn_  reliable, that's what you are!"

Blackbeard laughs, but it sounds sinister now. A shiver runs through the base.

"If that's what you think, then it's true," Ace says.

"Just the answer we'd expected, men!"

A laugh rises up through the tavern, as if somebody has ordered the men to make the sound and they all feel uncomfortable with it.

"Is it?" Ace asks dully.

"Damn right it is!" Blackbeard thunders. He shouts over his shoulder to a passing henchman, who jumps a mile at the sound of his voice, "Hey, get the kid a pint!"

"I'm not old enough to drink," Ace says, just as candidly. "And if you don't mind, Boss, I need those macs. Now."

The smile falls off Blackbeard's face like a light flickering off.

Ace's heart begins to pound, and it gets faster and more panicked as the man leans forwards. Still standing in front of him, Ace ducks his head further, knowing better than to meet his eyes.

"I'm sorry, what'd you just say?"

The tavern falls utterly silent in an instant, because  _everybody_  here knows that voice. _That_  voice; the one Blackbeard uses when he's definitely not happy. Everybody knows that voice, and everybody knows especially that you don't want to be on the receiving end of it.

Ace swallows hard.

"I need the mac rations I'm owed for that job, Boss," he says, trying to keep his voice strong. "I have to get back to my district soon."

Dozens of eyes heat up his back but Ace doesn't acknowledge them. A thick, terrible tension is expanding between him and Blackbeard, tearing through the air between them like an electric shock.

"Oh, you need them, do ya?" Blackbeard laughs again but now it sounds nothing like a laugh. Humourless and insane, it rings through the silent bar impossibly loudly. "And what if I was to tell you no?" He speaks like a jester, capering to the crowd surrounding him, mocking Ace in a way that's distinctly dangerous. A shiver runs down Ace's back. "What, you're gonna wrestle them off me?"

"Boss, I-"

"See here's the thing, Ace. You're damn reliable, but one thing you're not?"

Ace hazards a glance upwards and blanches, taking a shaky step backwards as he watches Blackbeard's face twist into a snarl.

"You've got no respect. Not for me, not for my gang - and I'm gettin' sick of it. How long have you been working with us, Ace?"

"Three years," Ace mutters.

"That's right - three years." And now, Blackbeard's voice rises from a growl into a bellow; Ace finds his feet stumbling backwards without his permission, ice flooding his veins like poison. "And if it wasn't for us,  _where would you be_?!"

"Dead," he stutters. "Dead in a gutter."

"You'd be dead, that's right!" Blackbeard stands and Ace's stumbling, hesitant gait backwards breaks into a full sprint. The crowds scramble to get out of his way as he dives over a table, flailing feet sending glasses and bottles shattering to the floor. Behind him, Blackbeard's voice roars, "You'd be dead, and that can still be bloody arranged, you little brat!"

The door grows in front of Ace and he lunges for it, shoving an unsuspecting man to the side in a desperate bid to get to freedom. Feet sliding in the filth that coats the floor, he grasps the handle and pulls, fumbling with the deadbolt, heart throwing itself against his ribcage.

"So maybe next time, get the job done a little faster, and I'll consider gettin' you those rations!"

The door finally comes loose and Ace throws himself out onto the street. Knowing he doesn't have time to unlock the gate, he takes a running leap and clambers up it, the spikes that cover the top of it scraping his stomach, breath coming thick and fast. Laughter, cold and cruel, rings up the alleyway before the door to Blackbeard's base slams shut behind him.

Ace hits the ground hard and lies still for a second, gasping for breath, eyes squeezed shut. He can feel the cold, damp ground beneath his back, and his left side burns with sharp agony from where he hit the ground. All is silent, and it's so much darker out here that his head spins with the effort to process the change in surroundings. Slowly, he tugs himself to his feet, gripping the wall beside him just to stay upright. The world spins on its axis and for a moment he sees stars, whole galaxies lurching before his eyes, taking over his vision. When they fade, the street behind them is dull and grimy, without a soul in sight.

It's freezing, and Ace's empty stomach grumbles insistently, reminding him just what he's missing out on. That lawyer, lying dead on the floor of his drawing room, for nothing. Ace can feel the emptiness of his own pockets.

Blackbeard isn't a good person. That much is obvious from the moment you meet him. He's one of those people who immediately sets a person on edge; he gets beneath your skin. He's beaten up Ace in the past, given him scars that he still has today. He's done awful things and for the past three years, Ace has witnessed most of then.

But he's never, ever failed to pay one of his men for doing a job.

It's almost like an honour code in this business. Even the roughest of gangs have some kind of warranty guarantee - you do the job, you get paid, whether it's in macs, money, girls, drugs or anything else. No questions asked. There's a thick, horrible feeling of dread in Ace's stomach as he asks himself internally whether, now that the rule has been broken once, it'll be broken again.

Spirits low, the eighteen-year old stumbles home, for once not tucking in his wings. It's a cold night, closing in on the middle of March but still clinging to winter, and they do a little to keep out the chill as he wraps them around himself.

Just as he's about to enter the grey district, Ace's phone beeps in his pocket. With cold fingers he pulls it out, shivering, and smiles slightly at the message on the screen. News travels fast.

{ **2:58AM - Law** }:  _I've been told there was a ruckus at BB's base. Do I need to come to your apartment and put you back together?_

{ **3:00AM - Ace** }:  _im fine, ashole, thanks for the concen. hows lami ?_

{ **3:00AM - Law** }:  _The same as always._

{ **3:00AM - Law** }:  _Do me a favour, and don't get yourself killed._

Chuckling, Ace turns off his phone and runs the rest of the way to his apartment. No matter how much Law tries to hide it, he's a good person - a good doctor, maybe even a good friend. He's gotten Ace out of more trouble than he even wants to think about. It's strange to think about, but Ace wonders if Law considers him a friend, or an ally.

Pounding up the stairs to their second-floor apartment, Ace unlocks the door with shaking fingers, teeth chattering. Even though it's unappetising, his mouth still waters at the thought of the mac waiting for him. God knows that he needs something in his stomach.

The kitchen is dark but the table is dimly lit. The mac packet is unopened and clean, and Ace knows that Luffy must have dug it out from the very depths of the cupboard. Flicking the light on - a few minutes of minimal power can't be too bad, right? - he sits down and tears across the slit at the top of the paper packet, ready to eat it in one, when-

A horrible smell fills Ace's nostrils, sharp and intrusive, and he physically reels backwards. The mac ration falls from his fingers and the contents spill out over the table, dark grey and covered in mould. Utterly inedible.

Ace's eyes flit to the printed eat-by date on the side of the packet. 08/08. Last summer.

Something rushes through Ace and he bends over the table, swiping his hand across it roughly. The ruined mac breaks open as it hits the ground and pieces of mould scatter across the floor. Vision blurred and eyes stinging, Ace stands, throwing open the cupboard desperately.

Completely empty.

Ace was meant to bring home five mac rations today ( _five meals_ , his brain taunts,  _that's what a murder's worth_ ). Now, they have none.

Panic rushes over Ace, followed by rage, followed by something desperate and angry and scared that he doesn't want to have to name it. Adrenaline bursting to life in his veins, the seventeen-year old slams his hand down on the light switch, suddenly acutely aware of how much money power costs. He doesn't even have to look to see how much water they have, because he knows deep down that they have none.

An image flashes through Ace's mind of Blackbeard, sitting at his throne and eating real food that  _he's_  never even tasted. Then, a memory - the lawyer's house barely three hours ago, filled with the smell of cooked meat, a packet of sweets lying carelessly open on his desk.

Stomach aching, Ace falls back into his seat and puts his head in his hands, and sobs until he can't breathe.

* * *

"Hey, hey, can you hear me?!"

Sabo's own voice echoes through the silence of the side-street and he winces, but still doesn't take his eyes off the body at his feet. A dead body isn't an unusual thing to find in the grey district by any means and most of the time, he would have barely given it a second glance.

A bleeding, half-conscious kid in the gutter is another story.

He can't be much younger than Sabo himself, surely, and his black hair is stained red in the light from a nearby street lamp. He's curled in on himself in such a way that Sabo can tell, almost immediately, that there's something wrong with his stomach. Most likely a stab wound. As much as he knows that he should, he can't leave the kid here to die.

Kneeling down, Sabo shakes the boy's shoulder gently, wincing as a small groan of pain bursts from his throat. "If you can hear me, could you open your eyes?"

The younger's eyelids flutter but he doesn't seem like he can get them open; at least, not fully. His face screws up, grimy and soaked with cold sweat, and he barely seems to be taking in any air even as he hyperventilates.

"Can you try just a little harder? I need you to look at me, okay?"

Sabo thinks of Law, harsh and forceful in his treatment no matter how severe the injury, and immediately tries to channel the opposite. Law was a great doctor, sure, but a people person he most definitely was not.

Slowly but surely, the boy's eyes open slightly. "'Ce...'ce...?"

"What are you trying to say?"

"Ac-"

The body shifts slightly, obviously trying and failing to straighten out, and practically howls with pain. Sabo shushes him, brushing his sweaty hair back, utterly conscious of how much noise they must be making. Alone in the grey district, at 0300, isn't the best situation to be in.

"You're okay, you're alright, just try to breathe, okay?" Sabo's hand touches something hot and wet and when he pulls it away, blood soaks his fingers in a sticky, congealed mess. The boy's face is white with pain - or blood loss - and he looks close to passing out, now.

Making a quick decision, Sabo pulls off his sweatshirt (the same one he gave Ace, he remembers, and it's still stained with his blood in places) and tries to gently turn the kid over. It's obviously causing him a lot of pain but he bites his lip, only a small whimper escaping his throat.

"You're doing great," Sabo reassures him soothingly. He wrack his brains for anything Law might have taught him about blood loss, or anything he might have learnt himself in the two years since he last saw the man, and comes up with only one thing; apply pressure.

When he tries, of course, the kid upon which he's attempting to do so flails and  _shrieks_ , tears leaking from his closed eyes. Something about the sight is heartbreaking. He's so young. Even younger than Sabo was when he left - hanging on the edge of childhood, with the tail ends of puppy fat still on his face. His wing curls around himself like a security blanket, but it's obvious that it's doing little to help him.

Gritting his teeth, Sabo leans close and murmurs, "I'm so, so sorry for this."

The kid's eyes open wide; for a moment, fear fills his gaze. Then, Sabo punches him hard across the side of the head, and watches as awareness fades from his eyes.

* * *

Luffy wakes up to immediate, ruthless pain. If he had the ability he would scream, but right now he can barely muster the energy to open his eyes. Something rough is pressed against his cheek and the world is dark around him, so much so that there's barely any difference between having his eyes opened and closed. There's a rhythmic jolting, sending pain shooting up his spine, as if whatever he's lying on is being shifted every few seconds. The burning in his stomach is more intense than anything he's ever felt, it seems, and it floods his brain with panic.

He doesn't realise that he's struggling to move until the  _something_  tied around his waist restrains him. If anything, that only intensifies his need to get out.

"Wait, wait, please!"

The hissed voice sounds desperate and exhausted. Luffy doesn't stop struggling, but he does slow down.

"You're Luffy, right?"

He tries to reply but the blood in his mouth gets in the way, thick in his throat, coating his teeth. After a moment, Luffy manages to spit out a glob and murmur, "How d'you know my name...?"

The words sound incoherent, not at all like they came from his own mouth.

"Your brother told me about you - you've got one wing." The voice rumbles against Luffy's cheek and it hits him suddenly that he must be lying down across the stranger's back. Or rather, he re-evaluates, he's tied to their back.

"Who-" Luffy breaks off into a coughing fit, feeling something hot and coppery on his lips. "W-Who are you?"

"I'll explain soon, I promise, but for now-"

There's a grunt and another sharper jolt, as if the stranger has pulled himself up onto something, and Luffy holds back a groan.

"For now, just trust me, alright?"

Luffy opens his mouth to answer but before he can, darkness floods into his vision in a wave of nausea and he blacks out, head falling backwards. The last thing he sees is a glimpse of dirty blonde hair.

* * *

After what feels like an eternity of climbing, Sabo finally manages to haul both himself and the kid through the window of his trailer, panting and gasping for breath. Every part of him just wants to collapse right there on the floor, and he can feel his calves burning along with the ache in his knees, but he forces his shaking legs into the main room. Luffy is limp and still on his back.

When he reaches the couch, eyelids drooping, Sabo unloops his belt from around his midsection. It was the only thing holding Luffy in place as he climbed the Stack (which caused for some terrifying moments) and when he's released, the young Fae falls back onto the sofa like a puppet with broken strings. His single wing curls instinctively around his stomach, obscuring the bloody patch from view.

For a moment, Sabo can pretend that he's sleeping.

The shock is setting in; Sabo can feel the cold numbness seeping through his skull and even though he can't see them, he knows his hands are shaking. It was a long, terrifying climb, and his head is spinning. Luffy's blood is cold now, sticking his shirt to his back while his sweatshirt is still pressed against the stab wound.

"Fuck," Sabo says quietly. It does nothing to break the silence.

He swears again, shaking his head, trying to force his body into action. Blood feels like it's pumping to his head in earnest.

Luffy doesn't move. His skin is so pallid and sickly that he might already be dead.

_Maybe he already is._

Sabo shifts into action in a split second as feeling comes rushing back to his body. He moves into the kitchen as quickly as he can without fainting, rifling through cupboards and drawers (most of which are empty), searching desperately for anything to help Luffy. There's only half a cup of water in his rations, and a quarter of a cup of pre-opened mac, but it should be something, at least. Bandages are a luxury too high for most on the Stacks, but Sabo has one and a half rolls of gauze - no disinfectant, though, so hopefully Luffy has a strong immune system.

Rushing back into the main room with a roll of gauze clenched between his teeth and the rest of the items piled in his arms, Sabo briefly considers calling Ace. The man's number is sitting on the arm of the chair across the room, even three months after their meeting. Then, he discards the idea. There's no time. Luffy looks a breath away from being a corpse.

Kneeling down beside the youth, Sabo props him up, gritting his teeth with grim determination. There's no way he's going to let some kid bleed out on his couch.

Not today.


	6. Feel Good

_Buzz. Buzz._

_Buzz. B-_

Ace's eyes snap open and he blinks into the darkness, disorientated and unable to recall how he got here, every sensation in his body feeling strangely muffled. For a few moments, he listens for sound in the utter silence.

 _Buzz. Buzz_.

A reflex movement; Ace slips his hand into his pocket and the flashing screen of his phone blinks to life in the blackness, a blur of harsh whiteness against his eyes. He doesn't have the energy nor the time to read the name and with fumbling fingers, he thumbs the green button.

"Hello?"

Heavy breathing and the loud, muffled scraping sound of somebody shifting a phone in their hand meet his ears. After a moment a male voice speaks, rough and deep but distinctly young. Panicked.

"Look, I'm sorry for calling you so early, it's just..."

There's a sharp bang in the background and Ace hears a female voice yell something that sounds like, 'He's not around here!'

Slightly more awake, Ace asks, "Hello? Who are you?" Peeling the phone away from his ear for a moment, he checks the time; it's nearly 3AM.

The caller ID says ' **L** ', but Ace is utterly positive that the voice on the line  _is not Luffy_.

"This is Zoro," the voice continues.

Ace's heart sinks like a stone and in a split second, he knows that something is very wrong. "What happened?!"

"We don't really know, it's all just a blur-" Zoro audibly swallows. His heavy breathing is clear to hear, crackling through the tiny speakers. "We were trying to raid a shop. Y'know, Luffy keeps going on about how you guys don't have much and none of us are all that rich, and we wanted to get out of there pretty damn quick, but-"

In the background, there's a harsh, frustrated yell and somebody else calls, "More blood - over here! Still no sign of Cap!"

Zoro coughs, and it sounds shaky and uncharacteristic. "But the police turned up. Scattered us - we lost sight of the kid, now we're looking for him. There's a lot of blood. It's been two hours, we still can't find him-"

Ace is up and tucking his knife into his back pocket before a plan has even formed in his mind.

"Alright, so you found his phone?" His voice sounds stronger than he feels.

"Yeah, near the blood. But there's nothing else - only a few feathers here and there."

"No trail?"

"Not that we can tell."

"How many of you are there?"

"Seven, without Luffy. We're spreading out now."

"Alright." Ace takes a deep breath, feeling like the world is swaying underneath him. "Text me the address of the store. I'll be there in three minutes, tops."

"Are you sure? We're near the industrial district-"

"Unlike you asspigs, I don't take any chances with Luffy's safety," Ace says icily. "Trust me, I'll be there."

Before Zoro can answer, Ace presses the red button and shoves his phone into his pocket.

* * *

Sabo winces sympathetically as the wound, in its full, gruesome glory, comes into view. "Hey, it could be worse...!" he tries to tell Luffy, even though the kid is already unconscious.

Deep down, he can't imagine a way this could possibly be worse.

The wound itself is shallow, but not so much that it could be called superficial. Six or seven centimetres long and gaping open jaggedly, grime lines the edges of the flesh, and Sabo grimaces at the possibility of infection. That in itself is a death penalty here. He doesn't even know where to start. Law's voice rings in Sabo's head, but instead of being advisory, it sounds mocking and cruel.

"Alright, try to hang in there," Sabo says, shakily. "This might hurt a little..."

First thing - clean the wound. There's no use in patching it up if it's filled with infection, right? Trying to convince himself that this is the best way to go about it, Sabo takes a deep breath and sprinkles a little of the water he has around the wound. The cleanest article of clothing he has is probably the sweatshirt; it's covered in blood, but it'll have to do.

The second Sabo tries to dab at the wound with the fabric, he immediately regrets it. Luffy physically arches upwards, a noiseless yell of pain croaking from his throat, face so tight with tension that it looks like he's about to sob. There's a shivering second of silence, a freeze-frame of pain that Sabo can't draw his eyes away from, and then the younger flops back onto the couch like a rag doll. He doesn't even look close to consciousness, but the agony on his face is heartbreakingly clear.

 _He's so young_ , Sabo's brain taunts him,  _even younger than you were-_

"Shut up," Sabo growls out loud, before turning back to Luffy. The words echo through the silence. Now, there are no gunshots - those will arrive in the morning. The sweatshirt is already soaked red, but he's far from done.

"I'm so, so sorry," Sabo whispers, before leaning in and pressing the fabric back against bloodied skin.

* * *

"Found anything?" Ace asks, tucking in his wings, breathing slightly heavily from the jog here.

The green-haired Fae jumps a mile, wheeling around, Luffy's phone clutched in his hand. After a moment, he composes himself and asks, "You're Ace?"

"The one and only," Ace replies drily, "Alright, where's this blood you were talking about?"

Zoro points vaguely across the street, where Ace can just about make out Nami, kneeling down to inspect something on the ground. Her red hair is braided tightly to her head on one side, the other side wavy as it shadows her face. "Over there. It doesn't lead anywhere. The rest of us are spread out around here - nothing yet. It's like he just disappeared..."

"Or the police got him," Ace finishes flatly. Every part of him feels numb to it all - maybe from sleep deprivation, maybe from his breakdown only a few hours ago, maybe from everything piled up in his head. "Alright, I'm going to go search. And I'd suggest that you start running."

Zoro narrows his eyes. "Why...?"

"Because if he's dead," Ace says, "I'm going to rip your heart out through your mouth."

The night is chilly, and he can feel the stares of Luffy's friends on his back as he stalks away, but Ace pays them no mind. There's a rage stirring in his gut now, blocking out the horrible numbness. A rage that promises hell to the entire world if Luffy isn't found. The lack of sensation is resolutely replaced by pure  _hellfire_.

The streets are empty and soundless, though they won't be for much longer. It's before dawn. Soon, the early workers will emerge into the twilight. Within two hours, surely all hope of finding Luffy will be gone. So Ace needs to work fast.

Suddenly, shockingly loud, Ace's phone vibrates in his pocket. He hesitates before checking the number, raising an eyebrow when he doesn't recognise it.

"Who is this?" Ace answers, slightly annoyed.

"Ace?"

Ace recognises the voice, but can't put his finger on it. "Who the hell are you?" he asks, more firmly this time, hearing a growl creep into his voice.

"Ace, it's S-Sabo. You need to get to the Stacks."

The first thing Ace registers, even before taking in the fact that it's  _Sabo_  talking, is the pure fear in his voice. He sounds shaken up - even more than Luffy after the last Hunt, even more than Sabo himself did that night under the bridge. Ace hates himself for the wave of concern that washes up inside him, so intensely that he can do nothing to stop it. Because some part of him, undeniably,  _cares_. And that in itself is dangerous.

"What do you mean?" Ace's voice must raise, because a few of Luffy's friends look over, curious. "Sabo, what's going on?"

"I found Luffy, bleeding, in your district; he's here with me, I'm trying to patch him up but I don't know what to do-" Sabo's frantic voice cuts off for a moment. "Oh shit... shit, Ace, please just get here.  _Please_ get here."

"Alright, okay, calm down, he'll be okay," Ace says. His voice comes out soothing and he does his best to convince himself that it's  _him_  he's trying to soothe, not Sabo. "I'll be right there, I promise."

"Thank you, thank you thank you thank you, Jesus-" Sabo draws in a sharp breath, seeming to pull himself together. "I'm sorry, there's just so much  _blood_...Okay, okay." He swallows and Ace can just about hear it through the phone microphone. "Okay, I live on stack forty-three, level fifty. Can you get up on your own?"

"If you manage it every day, I can do it in ten minutes," Ace says, trying to make up for how soppy he was acting earlier. The worst thing he could possibly do is make it look like he cares about Sabo.

"Okay," Sabo replies, dubiously. Then, "Crap, he's waking up, I gotta go. Thank you Ace, thank you for picking up. Thank you so much."

"Yeah, sure. S'not like I'm doing this for you, I'm just trying to save Luffy."

Sabo hums, as if he can't find words, before the line goes dead.

"What was that?"

Ace turns around - all of Luffy's friends, all of varying sizes and species and everything else imaginable, are clustered behind him. Zoro stands at the front, an unofficial leader. Not a day over seventeen, Ace would bet. Scruffy, stocky. Forced to grow up too fast.

"I got no time to explain," Ace hurries. "I gotta go - you don't need to look anymore."

"You know where Luffy is? Is he okay?!" Nami asks. There's something red on her collarbone that draws Ace's eyes, but he can't make it out in the dark.

"No," replies Ace bluntly. "Now go. I'll tell ya' how Luffy is when I can."

Zoro opens his mouth to protest, taking half a step forwards-

Ace is gone quicker than his eyes can process, black jacket melting into the shadows.

* * *

Sabo puts down his mobile with shaking fingers just as Luffy's eyes flutter open. "Luffy? Luffy, can you hear me?"

"Ace?" Luffy slurs quietly, staring blankly at the ceiling, as if he doesn't have the energy to look away. "Wh're are we...?"

"I'm Sabo - we're in my trailer on the Stacks."

"The Stacks?" Luffy giggles, and his throat sounds thick. "Tha'ssa weird place to be."

"I know, right?" Sabo tries to laugh through a tight chest, hoping it'll keep the kid calm. "Alright, I've bandaged up your stomach. I don't have anything to sew with so no stitches, at least until your brother gets here..."

He trails off when it becomes obvious that Luffy isn't listening. His brown eyes are locked right on Sabo's, intent and searching, and for a second, Sabo is afraid to move for fear of triggering some kind of alarm bell in Luffy's head.

Then, the tension breaks and Luffy laughs. "Shishishi... My stomach? Tha's weird."

"Yeah, I don't know how but somehow you got stabbed. Your brother is going to kill you."

"You know Ace?"

Yawning, Sabo stands, suddenly extremely conscious of the blood on his hands. "A little bit. Through his gang stuff," he says, vaguely.

"You mean he tried to kill you and then you got away?" Luffy asks, completely innocently, and Sabo jumps about a mile.

"No, no! Well, I mean..." Sabo turns away, trying to find a rag to clean his hands. "Kinda. But how did you know?"

An image of Ace telling Luffy about him rises in his mind and Sabo's face reddens as he imagines them laughing about the stupid noble kid, about how he seriously thought he could befriend him. The image is an unwelcome one, but it enters his mind anyway.

"Mah, Ace wouldn't just make friends with a human without bein' made to. He's an idiot like that," Luffy replies sagely. Then, he winces, glancing down at his stomach. "You patched me up?"

"Yeah. Sorry if it's not that-"

Luffy looks up, with a smile so bright that it blocks out the blood crusted around it. "It's great! I feel awesome - like I could run a race, or somethin'. You know?"

"That's great, really, but I don't think you're going to be running any races anytime soon," Sabo says in a weak voice. "Can I ask how you ended up bleeding out in a gutter? How old are you, thirteen?"

"I'm fourteen!" Luffy defends, "And I'll be fifteen in a few months!" After a moment, he slumps. "Me 'n my friends were tryn'a rob a store. The police turned up. We ran, I guess we got separated...The last thing I remember is running away with Zoro, and then nothing."

"Alright... Alright, just try to be more careful in the future, okay?" Sabo asks, for lack of anything else to say. His brain begs the question -  _why were you stabbed if it was the police? Don't they use guns?_  - but he doesn't voice it.

Luffy grins again, pulling his legs up slightly so Sabo has room to sit down. "If you want me to, I guess I could try!"

"Well, what if Ace wanted you to?"  _Because I know that he does._

Luffy leans in and whispers, conspiratorially, "I love Ace but he's a prick and he smells bad and I don't wanna listen to him."

Sabo can't help it - he bursts out laughing. "So I don't smell bad?" he manages to wheeze after a few seconds.

"Nah, you smell pretty bad," Luffy says, wrinkling his nose. "But you're nicer than Ace! He's mean. Kinda."

"What do you mean?"

Luffy shifts uncomfortably. "He's a great brother, but he's always trying to make me go to school even though it makes my head go funny, and he yells a lot and he's cranky."

Sabo blinks. "But...you know he cares about you a lot, right?"

"Of course I do! He's my big brother!" Luffy sighs and slumps back, shifting his legs to lie across Sabo's lap. "S'just, a lot of the time it doesn't feel like it."

Adjusting to the new weight in his lap, Sabo says, "He's stressed. We all are."

"Even you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, Ace said that it's only ever Fae who do the real work, and that the humans don' have anything to worry about and they never go through the stuff that we do." Luffy searches Sabo's face intently again, with that intense glint in his eyes like he can see what he's thinking. "But you look all tired and hungry and all that, even worse than Ace, and you live on the Stacks..."

Sabo chooses his words carefully. "Ace has a right to hate humans, I just- I don't think any of us have nothing to worry about."

"Hmm." Luffy yawns. "So you're saying I'm right and he's a prick who smells bad, and he was wrong!"

"Wait, no, I'm not-!"

But Luffy is already laughing, head thrown back, his single wing swinging slightly. Once he starts, Sabo does too, and soon both of them are howling with laughter on the bloodstained cushions.

It's the first time Sabo has felt this happy in months.

* * *

Okay, so maybe Ace underestimated this.

The Stacks feel  _wrong_ , in a way that no other place Ace has ever been does. The night sky above is obscured by hundreds of huge towers that stretch right up into clouds, dark monsters against the ash, each looking an inch from toppling. It's dark, even with the sky so light from air pollution, and every few minutes, a figure stumbles past Ace up the road to the city. It's not like the grey district, where there's a constant risk of confrontation. The people here move like zombies.

Ace knows what's above him but he's not going to look up again. The figures hanging limp from the metal scaffolding, suspended by broken necks, sway slightly in the wind. The ground is ashy and rough, covered in rusted bits of metal, and it feels like there are eyes everywhere. Ace picks his way through bullet shells and pieces of broken pipe, checking the numbers at the foot of each Stack, shoulders pulled together.

Footsteps, twenty feet or so behind him; Ace's ears pick up on them immediately and he picks up his pace, heart pounding. Are they following him?

A few seconds pass and then the footsteps speed up, too. Ace pushes faster, head spinning, counting what feels like the same numbers over and over and the Stacks flash by. Stack forty-three finally comes into view, lurching into the sky ahead of him, and he breaks into a run.

The footsteps start sprinting too.

Ace flies forwards now, throwing aside all pretence of nonchalance, stumbling through the world of broken parts. Behind him, the footsteps get louder and louder, closer and closer, and Ace throws himself at the scaffolding of the Stack as soon as he's close enough, pulling himself up and up, arms burning. Out of the corner of his eye, he catches the glint of a knife in the dark-

His pursuer growls in annoyance but backs away into the night, probably knowing that a chase up the tower is pointless. Letting out a deep breath, Ace looks up. Already his muscles are burning, just from the short climb. This is going to be tough; however, if Sabo can do it, he definitely can.

Counting trashed, rusted trailers, Ace begins to climb.

* * *

At some point, Luffy falls asleep, shifting so that his face is smushed against Sabo's shoulder. It's kind of like holding a sleeping cat; Sabo doesn't want to move an inch for fear of waking him, even though it's obvious that he's dead to the world. There's still no sign of Ace and for a moment he breathes deeply, eyes glued to his hands. Luffy's breath is warm against his shoulder.

It feels almost surreal, but Sabo decides that he likes being around Luffy. He gives off a constant aura of happiness, and it's so intense that it manages to distract from everything else. Maybe it's just the lack of human interaction, but Sabo likes the idea of being friends with him.

Outside, the sky is slowly beginning to turn grey, contours in the ashy ceiling emerging as the sun begins to rise. It must have been at least an hour since he called Ace, maybe even more. Sabo wonders absently whether he's at the Stacks yet - whether he's wandering around, lost. Whether he's been attacked. Then, he wonders why he cares so much and shoves away his worry. The only person who's earned his concern is Luffy.

Suddenly, as if on queue, there's a tapping on the window in the kitchen. Shifting Luffy gently off his shoulder, Sabo stands and pads across the room, tension spreading through his body. It doesn't release even when he does see Ace; it intensifies.

Ace looks awful. Pale and drawn in the dull light, his grey eyes meet Sabo's through the window pane in an almost pleading manner. They widen when they see his bloody hands and then he knocks the window harder, more urgently, perched precariously on a metal bar.

"One sec, one sec," Sabo mouths as he works open the lock.

The second the window is open, Ace clambers in, panting.

"Are you alright?"

Ace shoots him a withering look, but there's no fire in it. "Fine. Where's Luffy?"

"Just through here," Sabo says, leading into the main room. "I did my best to patch him up. A stab wound in the stomach - I found him in an alleyway..."

Sabo trails off, watching as Ace crumples beside his brother, hovering helplessly over his bloodied form. His eyes are wide and confused, and in that moment he looks younger than Sabo could have ever imagined.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Ace asks, quietly.

"I hope so," Sabo settles on. Then, "Are you alright?"

"Am  _I_  alright?"

"You look tired," he replies simply. "And out of breath. The Stacks are a pain, I know-"

"I'm fine," Ace says quickly. Once again, there's no malice in his voice - not like last time. It's as if he doesn't have the energy to be angry. "Thanks for... asking, I guess." He takes an audible deep breath. "And thanks for taking care of Luffy when I couldn't. It means a lot."

"Oh, really, it's not m-"

"It means a lot to me," Ace clarifies. "Especially from a human."

"Yeah..." Squirming slightly, Sabo looks away. "Most probably wouldn't help. But y'know, I'm trying to break that. Bit by bit."

"...Thank you," Ace says again, this time more emphatically.

"Anytime."

Sabo smiles at Ace and cautiously, the man smiles back.

Then, Ace asks, "So, when will it be safe to move him?"

The moment breaks. Looking away to hide his disappointment, Sabo hums noncommittally. "Maybe tonight. It depends how quickly he heals. It's a nasty wound with no stitches, I don't want him to bleed out."

"And you don't mind him staying here? Or...me staying here?"

"Why would I?" Sabo smiles slightly. "I don't have a bed, and you can take the other couch, I'll take the floor if it turns out he needs to stay longer. You look like you need a rest, anyway."

"We're Fae, and you seriously don't...?"

"Look around, Ace," Sabo says, still with that sad smile.

And for the first time, Ace does. The trailer is tiny, even smaller than his and Luffy's living room. The two rooms can barely be called rooms at all; they're more like cupboards. The walls are bare and coated with rust, and the entire place feels cold, a cold that's so deep-settled that it gets right under your skin. Every few seconds the whole structure sways in the wind, and there's a constant muffled screeching noise, the sound of metal poles scraping against each other.

"I'm hardly in a position to judge," Sabo continues. "It's fine if you stay here - I don't want you to get hurt carrying Luffy back down. Anyway, maybe you should sleep for a bit-"

"I need to stay awake to look after Luffy," says Ace quickly, "I can't just go to sleep, what if he wakes up?"

"He'd probably prefer a sleeping brother over an exhausted one."

Ace hesitates, glancing from Sabo to the couch and back. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure." Sabo smiles. "Ace, Luffy's alright. And I won't leave his side."

Pointedly, with cautious movements, Sabo slips back onto the couch beside Luffy. Immediately, the young Fae shifts closer to him, resting his head against his shoulder and murmuring, "S'bo..." A moment later, he's dead to the world again.

"...Alright, fine," Ace agrees eventually, lying down across the other couch with his eyes locked on the pair across from him. "Don't make me regret trusting you."

"Of course I won't," Sabo says softly. "Night, Ace."

"You're sure there's nothing I can do?"

"I'm sure."

"..."

"Ace?"

"Goodnight, you shit."


	7. Twenty-Four Hours

Moving slowly and carefully, Luffy lifts his head from Sabo's shoulder and extracts himself from the cushions, wincing as the pain in his stomach spikes. It's midday outside, muggy and dull, grey in a way that hovers close to yellow. The light casts a tainted hue over everything, infecting the rusted metal sides of the Stacks.

It's surreal to be here. Luffy vaguely remembers last night, and the little he can recall is tainted by pain. He has no memory of coming up here but assumably, Sabo carried him. Maybe. It's all a blur. Ace is asleep on a couch across the room, deep shadows under his eyes, face taut. Sabo sleeps on where Luffy used to be, and there's a smear of blood on his face where it looks like he must have run a soiled hand over his face.

Luffy is entirely alone.

As gingerly as he can, stomach stinging, the teen pads over to the window across the room and looks out into the grey world. Thick smog obscures the ground and the bottom of the tower, and the only things visible are the other Stacks, their grey-black forms lurching through the smoky world, so high that Luffy can't see the top of them through the mist. None of Luffy's crew have ever been here before, and neither has Ace; it goes without saying that this is Luffy's first time in a place remotely like this.

It goes without saying that it's slightly terrifying. Because  _nobody_  lives in the city without hearing horror stories about the Stacks. Parents use them to scary lazy children into working, the threat of abject poverty a well-used scare tactic. Gangs steer clear of them, unless there's a fight to be had; they're the perfect lawless zone, because even the police won't come out this far. Even Robin, who knows everything about everywhere at any given time, has never left the city limits - it simply isn't something anybody would ever willingly do.

Except Sabo.

A human.

Luffy knows well that humans aren't all that different from them. He's known it for a long time. But Sabo and Ace, both passed out, pale and tired, curled up apposite one another... They could be the same species. They could be  _brothers_. But one is living far better than the other, and it's not the one Luffy would have ever expected. Ace's words about entitled, cruel humans ring in his ears... but they sounds indistinct and distorted. Luffy wonders if Ace himself believes them fully anymore. If he ever did.

Luffy tiptoes over to the table in the kitchen and sits on it, cross-legged, ignoring his aching stomach. His eyes stay locked on Ace.

He knows better than anybody that Ace has his reasons for hating the humans. Huge, messy, ugly reasons. He doesn't know all of the details but he knows enough; he knows about the nightmares, so intense that Ace doesn't sleep for a week afterwards; he knows about the scars; he knows about the brand. Luffy understands well that it's easy to hate them, and for Ace, it's easier than most.

Sabo makes a small, snuffling noise in his sleep and rolls over. Just across from him, Ace shifts almost subconsciously towards the noise and again, they look so eerily alike that they could be twins. There's no 'human' and 'Fae' anymore. They're just two teenagers.

Ace's fierce voice rings through Luffy's head and he shivers, the hatred in the sound clear even through memory. He's probably angry with Luffy. Didn't he have a job last night? Luffy hopes that he didn't have to miss out on it. That'll probably just make him angrier.

Why does Luffy always mess up when it comes to Ace?

Ace suddenly shifts in his sleep, and Luffy can see his hand tighten around the fabric of the couch. He's going to wake up soon...

Suddenly, going out to explore seems far more favourable.

* * *

Ace wakes slowly, the kind of wakefulness that you don't realise until your brain processes that you're staring ahead. His feet are cold, cold enough that they're tingling, and the ceiling above is adorned with scratched, peeling paint. A familiar creaking, screeching noise meets his ears and it takes him a minute to realise where he is.

Shifting slightly to the side, the first thing Ace sees is Sabo. He's pale, Ace's brain processes, and every part of his face seems shadowed in some way; the dips of the hollows in his cheeks, the bags under his eyes, the tightness of his forehead. Curled up on the couch, he looks even smaller and skinnier than he is.

The one thing that it takes Ace a moment to process is the fact that  _Luffy is gone_.

There's a sudden creaking noise from a few metres away, then a thump, then a whispered, " _Fuck_."

Then Ace is off the couch, moving so fast that his head spins with nausea, because Luffy is half-hanging out of the window, goddamnitt, an inch from falling, and looking at Ace like a deer in the headlights. Ace physically throws himself forwards, hands grasping at the younger's shirt, pulling him desperately against his chest and away from the drop to the ground below.

Luffy falls back with a yelp, flailing madly but not fighting back, but as soon as he's away from the window he pulls himself away from Ace like a trapped cat, skittish and wary. For a moment they stare at each other, breathing heavily, and then Luffy slumps and Ace bursts forward and yanks him into a desperate hug.

"You're alive... holy crap, holy crap,  _you're alive_ ," Ace says into his hair, holding him so tightly that every part of them seems to be touching, feeling the tension ebb from his body.

"I'm so sorry," Luffy murmurs, muffled into his chest.

Ace pulls back a little. "What?"

"I'm sorry for worrying you. And I guess you had a job, too..."

"Wait, I- what?"

Luffy looks up at him, and his brown eyes look tired. "I got stabbed. I thought you'd be..."

"You thought I'd be angry?!" Ace yanks him back in again, horror flooding through him. "Luffy, no, it wasn't your fault that you got-  _god_ , you didn't ask to get stabbed, it's fine. I'm relieved. I'm not angry."

"You're not?"

"Definitely not."

They cling to one another for a second more before Luffy murmurs, "S'just, you've been angry a lot."

Ace's heart sinks into his stomach. "I..."

"And I don't blame you." When Luffy looks up again, he no longer looks so tired. "It sucks that you've gotta do stuff for Blackbeard and if you're angry it's not your fault, and I don't blame you."

Ace swallows, blinking hard, before trying a crooked smile. "You're fourteen, kid, don't try to understand all this."  _You shouldn't have to make excuses for me._

Luffy shrugs and then grins widely. "But I do."

They hug for a moment more, and Ace is content.

But then the moment breaks as Luffy starts to rub his face back and forth over the other's chest. Ace pulls away, and, "You fuck, were you trying to get boogers all over me?!"

Luffy grins cheekily and steps back, wiping his nose. "Maybe..."

"That's the little shit of a brother I know!"

All the tension melts from Ace as he and Luffy laugh, and for a moment, they aren't on the Stacks anymore. It all melts away as they exchange smiles and something in Ace snaps back into place.

They're interrupted by a cough.

Sabo leans against the door, looking mildly interested, rubbing his eyes to get sleep out of them. When Luffy sees him his eyes light up, but Ace's stomach clenches slightly and he says nothing.

"Sabo!" Luffy crows, running forwards with a grin. "You're awake!"

"Yeah, that I am," the human replies easily. "How are you feeling?"

"Maah, my stomach hurts a bit, but I'm okay!"

Sabo bites his lip, glancing at Ace. "It's a hard climb down, I don't know if it would be the best for your stomach..."

Tilting his head to the side, Luffy asks, "So, should we stay here?"

Something in Ace immediately wants to protest, rising up angrily in his chest, but he pushes it down. Sabo looks completely truthful, at least. If he was really trying to keep Luffy here to hurt him, he would have hurt him last night, when he had the chance. But at the same time...

"How long?" Ace leans back against the cold wall and stares neutrally across at Sabo.

"How long until what?"

"How long does he have to stay?"

Sabo takes a small step back and from that, Ace figures that he must look relatively sullen. He does his best to unfurrow his brow, to make himself look less threatening.

"I honestly couldn't say. At least until tomorrow. I mean..." Sabo glances at Luffy and his gaze becomes more sure. "He was stabbed. That doesn't go away over night."

And suddenly the tension that had been curling in Ace's chest, the anger settled in his veins burst forward - because Sabo isn't a threat, he's been nothing but good to them, but he still doesn't have wings and that triggers something in Ace that he can't justify.

"Oh, and  _you'd_  know, human?"

Sabo meets his eyes and unlike that night under the bridge, he doesn't look in the slightest afraid. "Yes, I would."

As tension grows thick in the air, Luffy glances back and forth between the pair, looking a little lost. "Uh...?"

Ace shakes his head and breaks the battle of wills first. "It's nothing, Luffy. We'll stay here for a night and be off in the morning. And that's it."

* * *

The first hour is relentlessly awkward. Sabo sits in the kitchen, talking to Luffy as the kid eats one of the macs Sabo offered him (Sabo's last one, actually, but he tries to ignore that), and Ace stays in the main room and glowers at the wall, occasionally standing only to pace like a caged animal. Luffy is good enough company, constantly cheerful, strangely endearing. He's very young. They play cards for a while but eventually, they just talk.

Sabo doesn't learn much about Ace, but he learns a lot about Luffy, who seems to have so many words he wants to say that he can't get them all out. He loves his friends. His brother is amazing, really, he is, but he's so angry and sad nowadays that Luffy barely knows him. Their house took a long time to get and it's home, but it's always so cold that they both end up with blue fingers. Little details like that, but it means a lot to Sabo that he's even hearing them. Most Fae wouldn't dare to say more than a few words to him.

Luffy, he's coming to understand, is an exception to most rules.

"Don't worry, it gets cold here too," Sabo tries to reassure. "But summer's coming soon."

Luffy wrinkles his nose and taps the table with his blunt nails. "It's all metal here, does it get really cold?" He turns innocent eyes to Sabo. "Is that what happened to the people hanging up outside?"

Grimacing, Sabo looks away. "It's not really freezing, it's not that bad," he lies. "And as for the bodies...uh..."

"You don't want to say."

"...No. Not really."

Luffy waits a moment and then grins, but it's smaller now, less bright. "That's cool, I guess."

Neither speaks for a moment and Sabo looks for something to do, for some kind of distraction from the oppressive silence. A distraction thankfully comes in the form of a loud thump from the main room.

Sabo stands and walks into the next room cautiously, behind Luffy, and is met with the image of Ace lying crumpled on the floor, eyes closed. He rushes forwards immediately, turning Ace over, feeling for a pulse as he rakes him with his eyes, but he's interrupted by the sound of Luffy's laughter.

Howling with laughter, Luff sits down at Ace's head and pokes at his cheek. "I knew this would happen!"

Sabo stares.

"You knew...what...how?" he manages to force out.

Still laughing, Luffy says, "Ace's got narco-whazzits. Narcolepty. Somethin' like that."

"Narcolepsy?"

"Yeah, that's it!"

The panic in Sabo's chest recedes, and he finally realises that it was there in the first place. Sitting back, he tells Ace's prone form, "You scared me to death, you ass."

Snickering, Luffy reaches into his pocket and pulls out a black marker, shooting Sabo a mischievous look. Sabo doesn't protest, just watches curiously as the younger uncaps the marker and presses it to Ace's forehead, writing carefully across his forehead, 'ASSFACE'.

Sabo can't help it - a laugh bursts from his mouth. Luffy glances back up at him and grins, eyes bright, holding out the marker. "You try!" he whispers.

Hesitating, Sabo takes the marker and moves a little closer. Both excitement and apprehension curl in his chest but Sabo leans forward anyway, colouring the tip of Ace's nose black before adding whiskers and bushy eyebrows. Luffy falls about laughing as Sabo pulls back, after marking his work with a curly 'S'.

"That's brilliant!"

"Thanks, Lu," Sabo replies, grinning, but Luffy pauses.

"'Lu'?"

Sabo hesitates, backtracking. "Sorry, it just slipped out, I can stick to 'Luffy' if you want-"

"I like it!" Luffy grins. "It's what Ace used to call me. It's nice!"

Sabo exhales deeply. "That's... good. That's great. Lu it is, then."

Suddenly, Ace jerks in his sleep. A moment later, his eyes open and he looks up at Sabo and Luffy, and the marker in Sabo's hand. It seems to take him a moment to process where he is and what must have happened, and then he lurches upwards and yells, "Luffy, you  _shit_!"

Laughing madly, Luffy dances backwards and darts away, back into the kitchen, Ace on his heels. It's such a small space that Ace catches him immediately, and even as he's punched in the head, Luffy laughs.

"It wasn't all me I swear!"

"Yeah, like hell, lil' bastard!"

Luffy manages to break free for a moment and gasps, between laughs, "Sabo did some too! Look, he's got the marker!"

Ace's head swivels around and the smile falls off his face and for a second, Sabo's sure that he's going to attack him. A split second passes, far too long, extending through the air like a spear; then the grin reappears suddenly and Ace and Luffy are on top of him.

For a moment, Sabo panics - the world spins over him, his back hits the ground hard, Ace's scowl is burned into his brain. Then the brothers begin to laugh, piled on top of one another, and something about Ace is wild and unrestrained as he pins both Sabo and Luffy hard against the ground.

"You're both pieces of shit," he grins, and Luffy whoops.

"I'm proud of it!" And, after a moment, "Hey, Sabo...you okay?"

Sabo shakes himself and smiles, anxiety slipping away. "Yeah, I'm good."

* * *

By the third hour, Luffy is fast asleep, tucked against Ace and snoring obnoxiously. Outside, it's raining, afternoon settling in quickly. Ace looks dozy too, but not quite asleep. Not quite ready to let his guard down yet.

"Why'd you do it?"

Ace's head snaps up at the question, grey eyes bright. "What?"

"This morning you hated me. Then suddenly I'm play-fighting with you and your brother." Sabo tilts his head. "What changed?"

Ace shifts, almost self-consciously, and looks away. For a moment he doesn't speak and Sabo's sure that he isn't going to answer. But eventually-

"You called him 'Lu'," Ace says, softly. "It's what his old family used to call him - he told me himself. And he's never let me call him that, 'cause he said it brings back bad memories. But when you did it..."

He trails off pointlessly, as if no more words are needed even though they are. For some reason, Sabo's heart is racing.

"And you played along with his stupid games too, like drawing on me, and last night you carried him all the way up here, and..." Ace seems to struggle for a moment, wings curling in on themselves. "I'm trying. To be thankful. I am."

Sabo opens his mouth to reply, even though he doesn't know what to say to that, but Ace ploughs on before he can.

"And you're probably the best human I've met for a long time. So I don't want to fuck this up."

Sabo asks cautiously, "What is 'this'?"

Luffy shits a little, flopping onto the floor but not waking, and Ace sighs and says, "I don't know."

* * *

For the hours leading into the night, as the sky slowly begins to stutter into darkness, they play cards. Half of the pack is missing and they're grimy and too stiff to shuffle, but it's fun. Luffy cheats obviously and bluntly, and Ace cheats like a pro, and Sabo cheats quietly - quietly enough for Ace not to notice until the last minute and Luffy not to notice at all. Even though both Sabo and Ace can play relatively well, Luffy has the devil's luck, so the wins are evenly divided by the end. Laughter rings through the small kitchen, metallic as it echoes off the walls. It occurs to Sabo that this is the first time since the incident two years ago that he's had people here with him.

It's fun.

"Goddamnitt! Stop it, you fuck!"

Luffy cackles madly, brandishing the Queen of Spades for the sixth time since they started playing bitch. "Suck on that!"

Sitting back and watching them interact, Sabo can't hold back his smile. There's still a line of tension in Ace's shoulders, but it's fading. It's slow, but it's fading.

"Alright," Sabo yawns as he slaps his cards down on the table. "The kid wins. Again."

"Let's play a different game," Ace grumbles, yanking three red cards out of his sleeve. "I'll win this one."

"You can try," Luffy taunts. "I guess I'm just too good for you!"

Ace shoves his shoulder and he topples right out of his chair, howling with laughter, all attempts at loftiness thrown to the wind. Outside the night creeps in and Sabo risks turning on the light, even though draining the trailer power pack will surely be costly. It's worth it if it means they can stay like this, because it's the happiest he's been in a very, very long time.

And in a split second, it all crashes down.

"Crap. Crap, crap, crap," Sabo repeats, feverishly, standing up in a rush. Luffy pauses, laughter fading from his face, and Ace stands. He looks concerned.

"What's wrong?"

"I've got a shift at the pub - it's Friday - how did I forget?!"

Sabo glances at the clock on the wall and blanches; the shift started an hour ago. Bizarrely, for a moment the blonde man from the bar comes into his mind. Is he sitting there now, wondering where Sabo is?

Then the thought is gone and Sabo's worrying about what he really should be worrying about. His body goes abruptly cold, his head reels.

"Fuck, I'm out of rations, I forfeit my week's worth if I'm late-"

A pair of hands land on his shoulders and Sabo looks up, meeting Ace's gaze.

"Calm down," Ace is saying, but his voice seems distant, "It'll be okay. I promise."

Another hand, smaller and colder, lands on his wrist and Sabo feels them like anchors against his skin. He lets himself be pulled into a seat and an indefinite amount of time passes before he realises that he's breathing heavily, that the world is fading back in like a scene in a movie, that Ace and Luffy are hovering around him like they have no idea what to do.

"I'm sorry," Sabo manages to stutter. It feels as though he's speaking through a mouthful of cotton wool. "I'm sorry."

Luffy's grip tightens, and Sabo realises vaguely that his single wing is pulled around the blonde's shoulders like some kind of security blanket.

"You don't need to be," Ace says quietly.

The cards are on the floor, and the Queen of Spades blinks up at Sabo from under the ceiling light.

* * *

It's too late to go to the shift now - Sabo wouldn't get paid, anyway. They play a few more games of cards, finish off the last of the water, and eventually Sabo turns off the power because the idea of using up too much is making him twitchy. Ace makes sure to stay close, just in case, and promises to go out to steal something in the morning before remembering that he and Luffy are leaving.

He doesn't take it back - he can't just leave Sabo here with nothing, not in the state he's in now.

_So much has changed._

Because Sabo's no longer just a human; he's no longer just another person Ace can easily hate. He's  _Sabo_  - with blue eyes and thin wrists and a great sense of humour and not much more than the clothes on his back to his name. Sabo, who saved his younger brother; Sabo, who's different from every other human in this city.

Pretty much everything Ace believes is falling apart.

Eventually, when it gets so dark that none of them can see their cards and Luffy is falling asleep against Sabo's shoulder, they decide to call it a night.

Once again, sleeping arrangements prove awkward. Sabo props a sleeping Luffy up on the couch, then glances around as if he doesn't know what to do now. He looks a little lost. Ace shoves him resolutely down next to the youngest and then squeezes onto the end, touching knees with Sabo.

A shuddering breath in the dark. "Why?"

"I'm not saying that you're one of us, but...I wouldn't object if you were," Ace says, simply. Then, "Are you alright?"

It takes Sabo a while but eventually he settles on, "Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay. Thanks, Ace."

Ace shifts and then their shoulders are touching, and it's not much but it's nice. Luffy snuffles in his sleep. Only the sound of soft breathing fills the silence. After a while, Sabo's hand brushes up against Ace's and he feels himself flush, but... it's not an unpleasant sensation. Ace doesn't pull away. 

And it's nice.

* * *

Marco knocks three times, as always.

It's late enough that only Izo is awake when Marco gets in. Outside, the moon is high and the sky is clear, and no ash clouds the sky.

"What kept you?" There's something accusatory in Izo's voice as they close the door tightly behind him.

"The bartender never showed, yoi. You know, the one I've been helping out for a while? I stayed to wait for him."

Izo's face softens and Marco immediately knows what they're thinking. "There's a chance that he's not..."

Wandering into the large, empty hall, Marco shakes his head. He doesn't turn to look at Izo; he doesn't want pity.

"There's a chance, but it's slim. Very slim, yoi." Marco sighs heavily. "It happens to all of them eventually. He mentioned that he lives out on the Stacks a few weeks ago, yoi, so I guess I was expecting him to disappear. He's skin and bone."

"How's Ray'?" Izo asks, if only to change the subject.

"Getting by. He's got a new apprentice, yoi - just a kid."

"Kid as in child, or kid as in whiny teen?"

"Kid as in whiny,  _very dangerous_  teen," Marco chuckles. It sounds hollow. "Been involved in gang work since he was fifteen. Involved in the Blueton incident - did I tell you about that?"

"Briefly," Izo says. "Anyway - it's, like, 0200. I'm going to turn in."

"G'night," Marco murmurs, even though sleep seems very distant to him. "Sleep well, Izo."

"You too."

They tap their way up the stairs, black hair falling out of its bun, and just like that, Marco is alone. Left to worry about the blonde bartender and Oyaji and, as always, Ace.


	8. The Young Hero

 

* * *

Morning comes too quickly. Ace wakes up with a faceful of blonde hair, eyes heavy. It's dark outside - a day that would have been cloudy anyway, even without the ash - and almost too cold in the trailer to stand. Breathing onto his blue-tipped fingers, Ace shifts further into the messy dogpile on the couch and tries to forget the part of him that loves being so close to Sabo. The blonde shuffles a little closer, obviously freezing, and Ace stiffens but doesn't shove him away. Right now, he really doesn't want to. 

But of course, they can't stay here forever. Midday is fast approaching, and if Ace stays, he fears that that will be the last shred of shrewdness he has left, down the drain. Right now, at least he can convince himself that he's only staying because he has to.

He still manages to tell himself this even as he shakes Sabo awake, telling him quietly, "I'm going to go out and steal some grub, okay?"

"Be careful," Sabo says sleepily. Then, a little more awake, "Do you need help? You know the punishment, especially for Fae."

Ace plasters on a crooked grin, but it feels strangely real. "I'll be fine. Take care of Luffy for me."

Sabo looks into his eyes hard for a second. "You really have changed."

"I guess...I guess I have," Ace says simply, before turning around and pacing into the kitchen, where the window is. "See you in a bit. Don't try anything."

The last part is said simply so he can retain at least an impression of common sense, but hurt still flashes through Sabo's face. Ace turns away from it, guilty.

"Yeah, see you," Sabo echoes.

Ace can feel his eyes on his back as he clambers out of the window and into the cold morning air. It's a thick kind of coldness - the kind that gets right under your skin. Unusual for springtime. The metal bars are cold against his hands as he begins to climb down- and  _fuck_ , it's ten times more terrifying going down, feet sliding on icy bars, the world lurching below. Ace stays close to the bars, making sure not to lean back, trying not to look down as he begins to climb.

He can do this.

Quite a few trailers down, Ace sees his first resident of the Stacks aside from Sabo. She's human - a girl with short, auburn hair who looks right out of her window at him. For a moment they stare at each other. There's a red tattoo on her collarbone - an 'I', in thick, blocky font - and Ace wonders if she's the girl Sabo knows.

He continues to climb.

When Ace reaches the bottom, finally, his whole body is aching with the strain. He makes sure to stay close to the shadows, out of plain sight, and moves slowly through the wasteland. Nails are littered across the floor at intervals, like breadcrumbs. The bodies hanging from the upper levels sway slightly in the wind, some so low that Ace ducks instinctively to get past their limp feet. Somewhere far away, a radio blares an old-world song: 'What a Wonderful World'. It sounds mournful, warbling through the air sadly. Ace shivers.

Earth crunching beneath his feet, he nearly misses the small buzzing in his pocket. Ace catches the phone at the last ring and doesn't bother to check the caller ID before answering, "Zoro?"

"Are you with Luffy?"

Straight to the point, then.

"Not right now, no, but he's fine."

Zoro yells something to the people who must be with him and somebody whoops, and there's more yelling and then somebody says, very close to the phone, "Cap's alive! Is he okay? What happened?!"

Ace recognises the voice and tells Zoro, flatly, "Tell Nami that after the shit you lot pulled, she'll be lucky to even see my kid brother again. Ever again."

More scuffling, more voices, and Ace realises that he must be on speaker phone.

"Please, just tell us what happened!" It's a male voice this time, panicked, desperate. Scared.

"Luffy got himself stabbed. A friend of mine found him, took him to his home and patched him up. He's alive. No thanks to you."

Ace can't see them but in his mind's eye, he watches the group slump with relief. He can hear multiple sighs and groans of relief through the phone.

"That's good, that's... that's amazing. Thank you for telling us," Zoro says. "The signal's bad; where are you?"

Glancing around, Ace speeds up, already planning his route to the city limits. "On the Stacks."

Immediately there's a disturbance - gasping, shuffling, solicitous murmurs.

"Luffy's on the Stacks, too?"

"Yeah - and no, assholes, I'm not telling you which one." Ace sighs. "Listen, I know I can't keep Luffy away from you - when he's back on his feet, he'll be there. But for now, stay out of my hair; and save some macs. There's no food out here for him."

"What about you?" Nami's voice asks, and then there's a thump. A moment, and then another thump and she hisses, "Don't step on my foot!

"I can manage."

There's a second where nobody speaks and Ace is about to hang up when Zoro asks, quietly, "Does Luffy remember who stabbed him?"

A thrill creeps up Ace's spine - though he has no idea why - and he realises that he's no longer on speaker.

"No. Why do you ask?"

"I just don't want it to happen again," Zoro says simply, and it's so obvious that he's telling the truth that the chill in Ace's stomach fades. "Tell Cap that we're all thinkin' about him?"

"Will do. Bye."

"Bye."

* * *

When Luffy wakes up, they play cards for a while, and Sabo does his best to ignore the rumbling in his stomach. He worries a little about Ace - because everybody knows about the ironing punishment - but figures that seeing as he's never been caught before, he's smart enough not to get caught now.

...Right?

"Sabo? Hey, Sabo?"

Sabo's head snaps up and he realises with a jolt that he has yet to put his card down, and Luffy is looking at him with concern.

"Ah, sorry, I was just thinking." After a moment, Sabo puts down a Jack of Hearts and says, "Jackswitch, clubs."

"Damnitt," Luffy curses, picking up a card.

They play on for a while, and midday grows closer, ticking towards them like a timebomb. At some point, Luffy stops and says, "I don't wanna leave."

"Why not? Lu, we're on the Stacks. It's not exactly nice here," Sabo says, quietly.

Luffy takes a moment to find an answer. "I mean, I don't wanna leave  _you_  here."

Staring for a moment, Sabo chuckles and turns away. The card game is over. "Luffy, you've known me about three seconds, it's not your responsibility to make sure I'm alright. This'll all just be a memory soon."

"I heard Ace, last night," Luffy murmurs. "When he said you could be one of us."

Sabo puts down his cards. "I gotta stay here, Lu. There's nowhere else to go."

"You could come with us!"

"I barely know you. And Ace is probably struggling enough as it is."

"But you can't just...just stay here!"

"I've been here for two years, Luffy, I can do this."

Luffy's gaze turns beseeching. "We can't just walk away."

"I've known you for about three seconds. Of course you can."

Huffing, the younger lets his forehead touch the tabletop. "It's cold here," he whispers.

"I know," Sabo replies. To change the subject he says, "Tell me more about your friends?"

Luffy perks up. "They're all awesome! Zoro's got green hair - it used to be black, but I'm not meant to tell anybody that - and he's really good at swordfighting. Brook is too! And he owns the den, where we all kinda-live. Ish. And Nami's really cool; she's a thief in the industrial district, and an I. And Usopp lies a lot, and tells awesome stories! And Franky and Robin both work in the factories, and they live full-time in the den. Robin's really smart!"

Suddenly, Luffy's smile slips off his face.

"What is it?"

"Sanji's really awesome. He's human, he lives in the high district, and he..."

Something must show on Sabo's face, maybe disdain, because Luffy waves his hands quickly in protest.

"He hates it there, he does! I swear. His family are horrible..."

Sabo wracks his brain for any recognition of the name. "Sanji... Is he a Vinsmoke? Vinsmoke Sanji?"

"Yeah, that's him!" Luffy tilts his head. "How did you know?"

"I've got a bit of knowledge about noble families," Sabo says vaguely.

Luffy blinks innocently. "So, you used to live in the high district?"

"How do you always do that?!" Sabo yelps, "Seriously!"

Luffy laughs, but not for long, because now the air is thick and heavy.

"Do you..." Sabo licks his lips. "Do you mind that I used to...?"

"Nah, 'f course not!" Luffy taps his nails on the table. "I mean, Sanji's the same, and he's the best."

Sabo's heart leaps. "You don't mind that I was born a noble?"

"I don't think anybody should care how we're made," Luffy says, looking at the table. "No matter which way it goes. Nobles are stupid, but you're not one now, right?"

"Not technically."

"Then you're not stupid!"

"It's... really that simple?" Sabo can hear his own voice; he sounds a little lost.

"Yep!" Luffy laughs, and it's a good sound - warm and real. Then, more quietly, he says, "Sanji's family are awful to him... Are Sabo's like that, too?"

Wringing his hands in his lap, Sabo can't help but think back to that night at Blueton - then to even earlier, to being locked in his room after every debate. To plain, whitewashed walls. To a kind of glamour so underappreciated that it becomes grotesque. To bruises and the feeling of screaming yourself hoarse.

"Were yours?" Sabo asks.

Luffy seems to have little problem talking about them. "Meh, I guess. Not so much until the operation, when they got rid of this." He taps his shoulder.

"Do you miss them?"

"No, not at all."

It's a little illogical, but Sabo feels kind of jealous of the certainty in his voice. Because it's been a long time since he was that certain about anything, least of all his family.

Ace gets back with little fuss, but his haul is huge and they spend a while celebrating. Twenty-six mac rations, fresh and lined up neatly on the kitchen couch - and four cans of water, unopened and clean. Ace is covered in dust and there's a bruise above his eye, but he looks so victorious that Sabo doesn't want to ruin it by asking, so he doesn't.

"Whoop! Ace is awesome!" Luffy cheers to nobody in particular, throwing his hands up, drooling slightly over the food.

"At least I can steal a little food without getting stabbed," Ace quips.

"Next time, I'll do it," Sabo says, forcing Ace into a seat to check if the bruise is too severe.

"Sure, sure, I can take that," Ace grins, before freezing. As if it's only just hit him, as it has Sabo, that there's not meant to be a next time.

Sabo glances at his watch - and how the hell is it 1248 already? Ace checks his at the same time, face crumpling slightly, but then smiles slightly and says, "Let's divvy up the food?"

Ace and Luffy both want to split it, 50-50, but Sabo eventually manages to haggle it down a little - he takes his ten and insists that the brothers take the other 16 macs, and takes only a single can of water.

"Luffy's friends have stuff for him - I've spoke to them!" Ace says. "At least take more water - with summer coming, it'll be harder to get it."

"Don't you care more about your brother than some random human?" Sabo asks, playing the human card without really thinking about it.

But surprisingly, Ace pushes back. "You're not just 'some random human'. You saved our lives."

"Wait, what? I only saved Luffy."

Looking down, Ace says, "If he'd have died, I..."

"Ah," Sabo replies quickly. "Then... I'm glad I did save him. But I'm still not taking the water."

"You're frustrating."

"I pride myself on it," Sabo teases.

It's coming up to 1300 now, and the weight of their leaving weighs on them all. Wearing Sabo's sweatshirt, the fabric stuffed with mac rations, Luffy stands near the window. "We'll see you again, right?"

"Of course!" Sabo reassures, though he doubts it.

"What's your number? I'll text you!"

Ace nudges Sabo in the ribs, wings brushing his shoulders. "He'll never leave you alone, ya know."

Sabo doesn't care, though - not really. He scrawls his number onto the inside of Luffy's wrist with a marker and lets the kid hug him, enjoying the warm feeling that comes with it. And all too soon it's over.

Ace slinks past, to the window, tucking cans of water into his jacket. He smiles at Sabo for a moment. "Thank you, again. For everything. And... for a human... you aren't bad."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Sabo tells him with a grin. "Now get outta here - and Lu, tell Sanji to keep his chin up, okay?"

Ace's face sours for a moment but then he smiles one more time and clambers out. Luffy follows, beaming and nodding, and they wave from the small ledge outside. Sabo watches them climb downwards until they're out of sight, and the feeling of intense loneliness that follows almost bowls him over.

Turning away from the window, Sabo catches sight of two things glinting on the kitchen table and smacks his forehead. Two cans, side-by-side, both full. He's about to pack them both away, cursing himself for not noticing that Ace left them, when he catches sight of something written on the side of one-

 _Apartment B11,  
_ _Block 04,  
_ _G. District,  
_ _Outpost 116  
_ _Region 7._

An address; Ace and Luffy's address.

Sabo doesn't stop smiling all day, and the spring sun finally comes out that very afternoon.

* * *

The next morning, it's cold but Luffy still manages to sneak out, waving goodbye to Ace and darting through the grey district, feet slapping the icy ground. Spring still has yet to slip in, even if yesterday afternoon was warm, and he checks his phone on the way.

( **Lu - 02:29** ):  _hi sabo ! ! ! ! ! ! !_

( **Sabo - 02:36** ):  _hey luffy, you're up early?_

( **Lu - 02:37** ):  _Yeah! You too tho?_

( **Sabo - 02:37** ):  _I'm working at the conveyor_

( **Sabo - 02:38** ):  _you should go back to sleep_

( **Lu - 02:38** ):  _nah im okay! Wanna keep u company_

( **Sabo - 02:38** ):  _thanks, lu :)_

( **Sabo - 02:39** ):  _oh shit my boss is here, i gotta go, sleep well_

( **Lu - 02:39** ):  _see you sabo! ! !_

There's been nothing since. And that sucks, but Sabo's probably really busy and Luffy knows that he's gotta understand that. Clambering in through Pell's window, he goes through his usual routine - Pell, then Vivi, stopping to say hi to each one on the way. Once again, he doesn't linger in the third room. Dadan and her bandits are mostly asleep, but some manage to muster the energy to wave to him. Cheerily, he picks his way through them and waves back.

And then there it is. Just across the footbridge - the den.

Luffy is barely through the window and he's being smacked, hard, across the back of the head. Somebody shouts, "Took you long enough!" They sound tearful.

The room explodes with noise, and two people try to hug Luffy at the same time, wings brushing up against him, worried voices ringing in his ears. He hugs back without thinking about it, Usopp's curly black hair in his face, and looks at Zoro over one of Nami's arms. He looks some mix of relieved and angry

"So, uh... hey, guys?"

"You're a goddamn idiot," Sanji growls, but then he smiles slightly and Luffy knows that everything's going to be alright.

"What do you remember?" Zoro asks, the second Nami and Usopp let go.

"I... not much. Sorry."

Robin puts a hand on his shoulder and smiles down at him. "You don't need to be. We're just glad you're alright, Luffy."

"Yeah, C-Cap," Usopp sniffs, furiously wiping his eyes. "We couldn't find you for days!"

"Sorry, I was out on the Stacks!"

And immediately, just like that, the room stiffens. "Yeah, Ace mentioned that," Nami says quietly. "Are you okay?"

"What? Of course I'm okay!"

"But you... you just said you were on the Stacks, bro," Franky murmurs. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah! Me 'n Ace were with Sabo, we're okay!"

Zoro and Nami exchange looks, fleetingly, before turning their attention back to the younger Fae.

"Is it as bad out there as people say?" Usopp asks quickly.

Luffy thinks for a moment. "I guess? I mean, it's really cold and there's no water and climbing up and down is hard, but we didn't die, I guess, so that's a plus. It could'a been worse," he settles on.

"We're all just glad you're okay," Zoro says in a firm voice. "And you're sure you don't remember who stabbed you?"

Nami shoots Zoro a strange look. Something tense is hovering between the two, and Luffy can feel it.

"No, sorry. Not at all. I remember a lot of running, and then a lot of blood, and then Sabo carrying me; that's about it."

Slowly, the ground begins to disperse, though none of them stray too far. Brook isn't here but he should be back soon, and at some point Zoro leaves, clutching his phone and muttering about Chopper. Sanji and Luffy sit together on the couch, and Luffy tells him about Sabo, and about keeping his chin up, and then about how maybe, just maybe, this strange new human could be one of them.

"You haven't known him for long, though, right? How can you be sure that he's all that great?"

"I know he is," Luffy replies simply. "I mean, he saved my life, right?"

"I'm just sayin'... If he used to be a noble, Cap..."

"We trusted you, though, and that worked out?"

Sanji bites his lip. "It's different," he settles on.

Suddenly, Luffy's phone vibrates in his pocket. He pulls it out and smiles, showing Sanji the message blinking on the screen.

( **Sabo - 07:04** ):  _hey lu, off work now. Also tell Ace thanks for the water?_

"Wait, he calls you that? But you never let us...?"

"He's Sabo," Luffy says wisely. "Y'know?"

"Not really," Sanji says helplessly.

"He wanted to meet you - c'mon!" Luffy puts his phone up and before Sanji can protest, he snaps a photo of them together, a slither of floor visible in the background, covered in nicknacks. He clicks send before Sanji realises what he did and brandishes his phone victoriously.

"You shit!" Sanji growls, but they're both interrupted by Zoro climbing back through the window and scooping a scrap of black fabric off the ground behind them.

"Left my bandana," he says gruffly, before practically running back across the room and climbing through the window.

"That was... weird," Sanji says quietly.

Luffy's phone buzzes again.

( **Sabo - 07:06** ):  _he's got vinsmoke eyebrows_

"Tell him that he's a little shit," Sanji scowls.

( **Lu - 07:07** ):  _Sabo told me to tell you that you're a shit_

Luffy's laughing so hard that he can barely type, and the room seems to light up with it. The stab wound stings a little with the movement, but it feels real.

It feels good.

* * *

Ace finally musters the courage to go back to the base, specifically at a time when he hopes Blackbeard will be asleep, soon after Luffy leaves to go see his friends. He makes sure to hide all of their food and water away securely before leaving, and brings his knife.

The walk took longer than usual, he realises. Blackbeard's base lies snugly in the crags between two districts, where worlds seem to melt into one another, and it seems quiet in there. Ace takes a deep breath, and then another, and then pushes open the door.

The tavern is completely empty. A dark figure darts up the stares across the room, to Blackbeard's private rooms above, and Ace can feel his gaze on him. Apart from the stranger, there's nobody around. Ace doesn't look at the stranger - just lets him be. Blackbeard shelters some unsavoury people.

There are four new jobs on the noticeboard - two for macs, two for money. All relatively easy, though the robbery of the industrial district conveyor looks tricky. Ace takes all four and mentally plans time for them. Hopefully Blackbeard will actually pay up this time...

Ace glances across the room, to where the barrels of mac packets are, and bites his lip. There's nobody here - if he was quick enough, subtle enough, he could...?

Suddenly, a voice from the top of the stairs. It's quiet, but Ace still jumps.

"I won't tell."

The voice is male and kind of familiar. Ace doesn't look up at the stranger, simply nodding at the ground and, throwing aside his worries, he runs across the room and grabs a handful, stuffing them into the inner and outer pockets of his jacket.

When he's satisfied that he's got all that he can carry, Ace looks up at the stranger, still hidden in the shadows of the upper floor. "Thank you."

There's no reply. Pockets full and heart hopeful, Ace takes the four jobs and practically runs from the base, not looking back. He doesn't pay much attention to anything as he runs home, moving on autopilot, and only really comes back to his senses when he's unlocking the door to apartment B11.

There's somebody on his side under Blackbeard's protection.

The thought resounds through his head as he packs the mac rations away, a he lines up the notes for jobs on the table. In itself, it's incomprehensible.

There's somebody in his corner.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry but again, i dont have time to answer comments right now. thank you for reading, ill get around to replying soon!


	9. Ghosts

"The usual?" Sabo asks, raising an eyebrow.

Marco seems to blink himself back to awareness and takes a stool at the bar, still staring hard at Sabo. After a moment, he speaks. "Sorry, I just... hadn't expected to see you again, yoi. You weren't around last week."

"Ah, sorry about that! A friend needed my help." Sabo grins at the table at the thought of them but then stops himself, trying to get the brothers off his mind. It's been a week, filled with constant texts from Luffy and nothing from Ace, and he still can't stop thinking about it.

Marco examines his face and then snorts. "You seem happy, yoi. Special friend? Got a girl out on the Stacks?"

"Why does everybody ask that?" Sabo asks to himself despairingly. Then, louder, "No, just two brothers I wanted to help out. One got into a bit of a scrape."

"Did it turn out okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, they're fine now. I think."

"You think?"

"Neither is the best at keeping contact," Sabo laughs, sliding Marco's drink across to him. "And they're both Fae - the elder doesn't take too kindly to humans, I guess."

"Oh yeah? And what about you?" Marco tilts his head. "How do you take to the Fae, yoi?"

"I'm the bartender, aren't I meant to ask all the questions?" Sabo jokes. After a moment, the atmosphere sobers again and he sighs. "I don't think anybody should care how we're made," Sabo says softly, repeating Luffy's words, because they're the truest he's heard in a long time.

"Aye to that," Marco says. "Good to know this entire city isn't insane."

They both laugh, and Sabo finds himself glad that there's somebody in his corner. Aside from Luffy, and maybe Ace. Hopefully Ace.

There's a sharp vibration from Sabo's pocket and he turns around, leaning against the counter. He's expecting the text to be from Luffy - because holy crap, Ace wasn't lying about him not leaving him alone - but surprisingly, the message reads:

( **Ace - 21:39** ):  _hey, luffy wants you to com here for the nigt but Ive got a job and the BBs cant see you here, so can he stae with you?_

Sabo considers for a minute, something in him lifting slightly. He smiles at the screen, feeling warm, and is about to type out a reply when-

"Ace?"

Sabo spins around - Marco looks innocently curious, but there's something hard in his voice and in his face that puts Sabo on edge.

"My friend," Sabo says in a level voice.

"Ace... Nice name," Marco comments offhandedly. But that hard intent is still there. "Ace what?"

"Sorry?"

"What's his last name?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Why's it a secret?"

" _Why do you want to know_?"

They come to a stalemate and it hits Sabo, with a fierce intensity, the realisation that there must be a hell of a lot of people after Ace.

And Marco might be one of them.

"Nothing. It's nothing," Marco says eventually. "I just... used to know a guy called Ace."

"Yeah, well, I doubt it's my Ace. My Ace hates humans," Sabo bites back.

"But he's still 'yours', apparently," Marco says neutrally. He stands. "Look, just forget that I said anything."

"Alright... Okay, see you, Marco."

Marco downs his drink in one and slides three small mac rations across the bar. "See you next week, kid."

And just like that, before Sabo can protest, he's gone. He slips the macs into his pocket quickly, before they can be spotted, and tries to remove the conversation from his head as he texts Ace back:

( **Sabo - 21:47** ):  _yeah, sure! Ill be back from my shift at 2300ish so anytime after that_  
( **Sabo - 21:47** ):  _why didnt he text me himself tho? Not that i dont enjoy hearing from you_  
( **Ace - 21:48** ):  _im p sure he forgot to tell you before he left_  
( **Ace - 21:48** ):  _idiot_  
( **Sabo - 21:48** ): _damn_  
( **Sabo - 21:49** ):  _also i gotta ask_  
( **Sabo - 21:49** ):  _do you know anybody called marco?_

Five or six seconds pass, drawn out in the quiet of the bar, and then-

{ ** _ACE IS OFFLINE_** }

* * *

When Luffy gets to Sabo's stack, it's empty and the window is locked. It's cold, all light having faded from the sky, and he sits on the small ledge by the door, legs tucked up to his chest. There's not much wind but with every breeze, the whole frame sways and jerks. At first it's terrifying, being so high up and so at risk of falling into the darkness below, but after a while it becomes sort of thrilling.

He still doesn't muster the nerve to stand, though.

It starts raining.

It's been a good week. Sabo always answers his texts (which pretty much nobody else does), and Ace has been in pretty high spirits the entire time. The cupboards aren't exactly stacked, but they're doing well for rations, and Ace is getting along okay with Blackbeard. Kinda. They're doing okay, though, and that's what mattered; and spending time with Sabo will be a good way to end the week.

Luffy's phone suddenly vibrates hard in his pocket, hard to distinguish against the rattling of the scaffolding, and he scoops it out and answers without much thought as to who's calling.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Luffy." He sounds sad.

Luffy's face crumples. "Ace? What's wrong?"

"I finished up that job over at the industrial district."

"That's great!"

"I... went to Blackbeard."

"...Oh."

Ace sighs heavily through the phone. "Look, you can stay with Sabo, it's fine. I just wanted to let you know - we missed out on those macs. And I don' wanna risk stealing anything tonight; the police are on high alert after that incident with Trafalgar earlier this week. And the ironing, y'know."

"Yeah, yeah," Luffy says absently, thinking hard. "Are you sure I shouldn't come back?"

"Luffy, I'll be okay."

"Okay, okay, fine."

"Can you also ask Sabo-" Ace takes a deep breath, like he's steeling himself, but then the tension of it breaks. "Ask him-"

"What?"

"Never mind," Ace says quickly, "I'll ask him when I see him. See you, Luffy."

The line goes dead.

Luffy sits back and shoves his phone into his jacket, smiling slightly at the realisation that Ace admitted that he would see Sabo again. It's colder than ever but he doesn't have to wait for long; soon, there's a creaking, rumbling noise and Sabo hauls himself up onto the ledge, clothes plastered to him with rain.

"Hey, Sabo!"

Sabo grins. "Sorry, you been waiting long?"

"Nah, I'm good - how're you?"

"Let's get inside," Sabo says, moving to unlock the window.

Inside the trailer, it's only slightly warmer than the frigid cold of the outside. They sit together on the couch, moving closer together to conserve warmth.

"Are you sure you want to stay here? It's not exactly luxury," Sabo grimaces.

"I like it," Luffy decides.

There are a few moments of silence but it isn't awkward - they're practically on top of each other but it's not uncomfortable.

"Oh yeah - have you spoken to Ace at all?"

"A little bit before I got here," Sabo replies vaguely. "Why?"

"I spoke to him just now - he seemed kinda upset. With you."

Sabo plays with a single crimson feather that must have fallen from Luffy's wing. "Why would he have been? Did he mention anything?"

"No - he said he'd tell you when he saw you. I dunno." Luffy shrugs. "I'm just kinda worried about him."

"I did mention..." Sabo jolts upwards. "Hey, Lu, do you know anything about a guy called Marco?"

"Marco?" Luffy repeats, scrunching his face up, "Nah, not at all. Why?"

"It's just... nothing. It's nothing. I'll talk to Ace when I see him, okay?"

"Okay!"

Sabo coughs. "It's nearly midnight, are you tired?"

"Not really..."

"Good, 'cause I'm not either. Cards?"

"Yeah!"

They play for a while on the kitchen table, knees touching, shivering slightly with the cold. But it's nice (even though Sabo wins nearly every match). Midnight creeps by, then 0100, then 0200. The atmosphere grows more wild, more excited, with every game.

Adding another tally to the scoreboard scratched into the wood of the table, Sabo whoops. "I win!"

"Damnitt!" Luffy curses, but he's beaming. "That was awesome!"

"Thanks, I-"

The silence outside shatters. Gunshots - so close that Luffy's ears ring. He flinches hard, instinctively ducking his head down.

"It's okay, this happens a lot!" Sabo tries to yell over the ra-ta-ta-ta of the shots.

Suddenly, the window across the room shatters.

"Okay,  _that_  doesn't happen a lot..."

The booming shots crash on their ears - glass plinks to the floor like raindrops. Bullet holes pepper the trailer wall, and one of the table legs explodes into splinters. Sabo grabs Luffy by the arm and tugs him into the main room, then across to the bathroom, which is barely the size of a cupboard.

Shoving him in, he hisses, "Stay here!"

"No! No way!" Luffy physically shoves his way out and for one shuddering moment, they stand together in main room, holding their breath as one. The bullets stop. The world stills. Luffy's ears are ringing.

Then the shots start again, so abruptly that Luffy yelps. The side of one of the couches is torn apart, mangled by half a dozen shells, and Sabo pulls Luffy down and curls over him, trying to protect him from the hail. The sound of gunshots echoes around them, metallic, sounding ten times louder than it should. The whole trailer shudders and Luffy is sure, in that moment, that he's going to die. He curls up so tightly that it feels like he can't breathe. Sabo's shaking.

It could be seconds, it could be hours, but it doesn't take long for the shots to trail off completely. The silence returns.

This time, nothing breaks it.

Neither Luffy nor Sabo moves for a long time.

* * *

Ace pushes his way through the crowded tavern. Blackbeard is talking to somebody already - a figure dressed in dark clothes with a hood, so Ace can't see their face - but breaks off the conversation when he sees Ace. Ace can't help but notice that the figure has a dark scrap of cloth tied around their forearm, emblazoned with the Blackbeard insignia.

"Next time, or I'll be the one to get it done," he growls at the figure's back, before turning to Ace. "Ace! Back already, eh?"

"Yes - to collect more jobs."

"Already?!"

"Yes, boss." Ace holds his breath.

"You've been getting a lot done recently, Ace," Blackbeard observes. There's no mirth in his voice, not now.

"I guess," Ace replies evasively.

"Any reason? It's still just you and your brother, isn't it?" Blackbeard leers.

"No reason, really." Ace's heart is pounding hard. "No reason."

Blackbeard stares at him hard for a minute and the atmosphere thickens. "You sure?"

"I'm sure," Ace replies, more firmly. "It's just me and the kid."

"Alright. Alright, fine - but remember, I don't like liars."

Suddenly, Ace's phone rings, loud in the tense silence that had enveloped them. "Excuse me," he tells Blackbeard, before spinning on his heel and shoving back through the crowd, pulse racing.

_He knows about Sabo._

The alleyway outside is pretty cold, but not bitterly so. Ace holds the phone to his ear and says, "Hello?"

"Portgas?"

"Law?!"

"Portgas, I'm calling to let you know that-"

"Wait, wait, are you okay?!"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Law's voice is cool.

"That huge mess with the police earlier this week - wasn't that you? I thought you got shot or some shit, that's what people are sayin'!"

"I'll have you know that I'm fine," Law says frostily. "But back to the topic. Remember when you gave me a few people to keep an eye on? A list of names?"

"Uh, yeah?" Ace's wings twitch with agitation. "I think so, but don't change the topic-"

"I feel like I should let you know - one Whitebeard Thatch was arrested last week for minor arson, and has now been released on bail."

"I mean you- wait, what the fuck?!"

Ace's mind stumbles to a standstill.

"Whitebeard Milo Thatch - currently living in the wilds with his family. Arrested eight days ago on suspicion of arson; he burnt down one of his father's old residences, assumably on Whitebeard's orders. Just outside of the high district. His father bailed him out three hours ago and now he's completely off the map - nobody's seen him since he was at the police station, not even when he was leaving. Does this mean anything to you?"

"I- yes. No. Kinda. I... what?"

"Words, Portgas, use them."

"Look, thanks for lettin' me know, I'll think it all over - but I got a request."

"And I hate you with a burning passion."

"I'll take that as a yes?"

"Fine, Portgas, but make it quick."

"You know that list? Yeah, can you add a 'Sabo' to it? Outlook Sabo - lives on Stack 43, level 50. Is that okay?"

...

"Law?"

...

"Law, I think we're losing connection-"

"I have to go," Law's gruff voice gasps, and then he's gone.

Ace lowers the phone, leaning back against the wall, then raises it again, and then lets it fall. A thousand revelations fly through his mind - Blackbeard might know about Sabo. Law knows Sabo's name (maybe).

 _Sabo_.

Ace raises the phone again, setting his jaw, and texts Sabo without really thinking about the words.

{ **3:49AM - Ace** }:  _you know trafalgr law  
_ { **3:49AM - Ace** }:  _we nede to talk ._

* * *

Luffy's sitting on the couch, shivering. Sabo watches him, knowing deep-down that the tremors have nothing to do with the cold. It is getting colder, though - the window is smashed, and a bitterly freezing draught sweeps through the room. Chunks of couch litter the floor, shells scattered across the carpet.

"Luffy," Sabo starts, "I-"

"I'm not scared," interrupts Luffy, "I'm not. I swear I'm not."

"Okay," Sabo repeats, "You're not scared."

The beep of Sabo's phone is loud, and both he and Luffy flinch. He punches in his passcode with fumbling fingers.

{ **Ace** }:  _you know trafalgr law_  
{ **Ace** }:  _we nede to talk ._

 _S_ abo draws in a shaky breath. So much has happened in the last half an hour that this feels like some kind of cruel joke, piled on top of all the other shit happening. Sabo had been sure that he'd left the whole thing with Law behind, but...

"Who is it?" Luffy asks, sitting up and wiping his nose. He doesn't meet Sabo's eyes.

"Ace. He wants to come here," Sabo replies. "Should I call him? Do you want to talk to him?"

Luffy shakes his head, hesitates, then nods rapidly. "Yeah. Yeah, I do."

"Got it." Sabo taps in Ace's number, putting the phone on speaker, holding his breath in anticipation. Luffy shifts to sit beside him, curled into his side.

The other teen picks up on the first ring. "Sabo?"

"Hey, Ace. You need to get here."

"Is this about my text?"

"Yeah, kinda, and... some other stuff."

A small crackling noise in the background, as if Ace is pacing. "What other stuff?"

"Somebody tried to kill Sabo," Luffy says quietly.

The crackling stops abruptly.

"What... what the fuck, Sabo."

"Yeah...uh, I..."

"Are you going to explain, or am I going to have to haul ass over there?" A muffled huff. "No, don't answer that, I'm coming over anyway. Maybe then you can tell me what the fuck you've got to do with Trafalgar Law."

* * *

Nami sighs, accepting a cup of steaming hot tea from Vivi with a hot smile. Teabags are a rare luxury, as is hot water, but they're something that Vivi's always willing to share and Nami's always willing to accept. It's a good chance to catch up, anyway.

"How've you been?" Vivi asks, slipping into her seat and nursing her own mug.

"Alright. Well, the usual, I guess," Nami says. "How about you?"

"The same as always," Vivi smiles. Then, she leans forwards and asks conspiratorially, "What about the disaster I heard about last week? At the industrial district?"

Nami sighs and sits back, closing her eyes. She feels Vivi rest her hand on top of her own and smiles slightly, though it's forced and doesn't feel quite real on her lips. "That's kinda what's on all of our minds right now."

"Can I ask what happened?"

"Of course you can, Vi, I just- It sucks. We're all worried out of our minds about him and he doesn't even seem to notice, and..." Nami swallows hard. "He's okay. He is. But I'm worried about the crew, too."

"What do you mean?"

"We're all drawing away - I can feel it. Robin hasn't visited the den in days and I'm worried about her; Franky and Brook aren't speaking to each other and nobody knows why; Zoro's getting more and more secretive. Luffy hasn't seen around and I guess we're all suspicious about what happened, about what's  _happening_... I feel like sometime soon, we're going to start blaming one another."

"There's something you aren't telling me," Vivi states, sipping her tea. She's still holding Nami's hand.

"Yeah, there is," Nami agrees. "Should I start from the beginning?"

"If you want, yeah - Nami, it's nearly 0400. You look awful. Do whatever helps."

Nami quirks a smile. "I knew there was a reason I loved you." The smile is quick to fall, however. "It started a while ago - Zoro started getting texts from an unknown number, talking about a traitor. And nobody thought much of it but I guess... I guess I got paranoid. The texts got to me. I started seeing the traitor in everything - things sometimes went missing, or somebody asked too many questions, or sometimes a story wouldn't quite add up. And it all built up and built up in my head but I never said anything because, y'know..."

"It's hard to accuse somebody who's like family, yeah," Vivi soothes, "I know."

"Yeah. But it all sorta came to the surface last week, because-" Nami inhales deeply. "We left the department store and scattered; I didn't see where Luffy went. The police were there, armed with guns and tasers. But we found out days later that he was stabbed."

Vivi's eyes go very wide. "That means...!"

"Yeah, I know - it wasn't the police who got him. It was one of us."

"Does Luffy remember anything?"

"No, not at all, but-" Nami breaks off with a small, choked gasp. Her head falls forwards. "Vivi,  _I_  remember something."

"Take a deep breath - it's okay, it's okay, I promise it's okay." Vivi leans forwards across the table, grip on the other's hand tightening. "Nami, who's the traitor?"

"I can't- Vivi, it  _can't_  be who I think it is. It doesn't make any sense!"

"You don't have to tell me, but... Do you really think the traitor wants to kill Luffy? Do you really think Luffy's in danger?"

Nami sniffs, wiping her eyes, taking a shaky sip from her lukewarm mug of tea. "I want to think that none of us want Luffy to die. But if I'm honest?" She looks up at Vivi with despair in her face. "I think one of us might."

* * *

Law shoves through the door, black and yellow wings tucked tightly against his back, shoving off Bepo's innocent concern. "I'm fine, I'm fine- yes, Bepo-ya, I'm aware that it's late."

"Where have you been?!" Penguin asks from the kitchen table, cradling a cold cup of coffee, looking more asleep than awake.

"None of your business, Penguin-ya. Look, I need some time to think-"

"And we need answers, boss, but you never seem to give us those!" Shachi retorts.

"You want an answer? Fine. The brat from Blueton is apparently involved with one of Blackbeard's men."

The whole room seems to freeze up at once. Nobody speaks; Penguin's mouth falls open, and Shachi goes very, very still.

"Sabo's alive?" Bepo ask quietly, then, "Sorry for asking."

"Apparently, yes. Living out on the Stacks. And chummy with Portgas D. Ace - Blackbeard's lapdog."

"Holy shit," Shachi summarises.

"My sentiments exactly," Law replies neutrally. "Ace wanted me to keep tabs on him."

"And what did you say?!"

"I said no, of course! What do you think I said?!"

"But, boss," Bepo interrupts timidly, "Don't you want to reconnect with Sabo?"

Once again, all energy seems to be seeped from the room at once. Law fixes Bepo with a frosty look and simply says, "No."

"Why not?"

"He hates me - of course I don't want to ' _reconnect_ '."

It's Penguin who speaks next, more quietly. "How is he? Y'know, after the fire..."

Law lets a small sigh escape him. "I don't know - Portgas-ya didn't say. But he's alive. Living on the Stacks, but alive."

Shachi opens his mouth to say something, but-

"No, Shachi-ya, I'm not telling you his address."

Shachi slumps. "Worth a try."

"Look," Law sighs, "I'm going to go get all this crap sorted out, and you morons are going to leave me alone and go to sleep, got it?"

"And if we don't?!" Penguin says courageously, but squeaks and hides behind Shachi when Law shoots him a glare. "Okay, okay, we got it!"

"Good." Law turns to leave but then, as if on second thought, looks over his shoulder from the doorway. "And Bepo - the next hunt is coming up. Stay out of sight. You two should be careful too, alright?"

Bepo nods forlornly, sitting down at the kitchen table. "I know, I know."

"We'll take care of him, boss!" Shachi grins, but there's something sad behind his smile. All three gang members watch as Law slinks away, deeper into the base.

"I was sure Sabo was dead!" Penguin says in a low voice. "You reckon he's doing okay?"

"Whether he is or not, he probably doesn't want to see us," Bepo sighs, looking at the ground. "I mean, remember what we did..."

"That was more his parents than us, though!" Shachi tries to defend. Both of his friends shoot him derisive looks, and he sighs and lets his head drop. "Okay, okay, so maybe it was pretty much all our fault."

"Look," Penguin decides, "We'll still be on his side if he comes back around. But we probably shouldn't wait on it, right?"

"Right," Bepo agrees, scratching at the fur on his arms as if he's uncomfortable in his own skin. A few white hairs fall to the ground.

"Downsides of hybrids - malting," Shachi jokes.

"Sorry..."

"Nah, don't worry Bep, we didn't mean it." Shachi's voice hardens. "There's no actual downside to hybrids, no matter what they say. Okay?"

"Okay," Bepo says quietly, before smiling and standing up. "I'm going to go make sure boss eats something."

"Good luck not getting murdered!" Penguin yells at his back.


	10. Outsiders

When Ace finally gets to level fifty, his whole body is aching. It's half past four in the morning, maybe approaching five. The grey sky is lightening. Sabo is waiting on the ledge outside his trailer, and he stands as soon as Ace reaches him, concern written all over his face. He seems a little steadier on his feet than the last time Ace saw him, a little less drawn, but still thin and still too pale.

"What happened?" Ace asks, and before he's given them permission his hands are on Sabo's shoulders, feeling across his frame for injuries, quickly and roughly. "Are you okay? Is Luffy okay?!"

"Ace, Ace, it's okay!" Sabo backs away from his hands. "We're okay, I swear, we didn't get hurt. Neither of us got hurt."

"What happened?"

Sabo grimaces. "That's a good question."

"What do you mean?"

"Look, maybe you should... maybe you should come in. It's not safe out here," Sabo says quietly.

When Ace turns reluctantly to the window, he blanches. The glass is smashed - pieces of it litter the ground and the windowsill like tiny diamonds, and the glass remaining in the pane is jagged. There are bullet holes spattered across the metal side of the trailer, dark and gaping like stab wounds.

"What the fuck, what the fuck," Ace mutters under his breath.

"Good question," replies Sabo.

Inside, it's still. Too still. There's a heaviness settled in the walls here, and it's cold, and Luffy isn't making any noise or rushing out to see him and that is  _in no way like Luffy_.

"He's in the main room," Sabo says quietly, tucking his hands into his sleeves and shivering. The tips of his fingers are blue.

Luffy is curled up on the couch, looking very small and very vulnerable and not like Luffy at all, and he looks up at Ace without saying a word from within the folds of what must be one of Sabo's sweatshirts. Ace flies across the room in an instant, hands reaching out at his brother, but Luffy cowers back suddenly, eyes wide and breathing quick, looking up at Ace, looking... afraid.

If that's even possible for  _Luffy_  of all people.

Ace stumbles back, taken off-guard by the fear in Luffy's face, hands dropping uselessly to his sides. The younger Fae curls up tighter, lurching back, something wild in his face.

Sabo's hand lands on Ace's shoulder. "We both had a shock. I think- I think it's best if we don't touch him for a while. Is that okay, Lu?"

Luffy nods, a sharp, jerky motion. His eyes are still so afraid, still so out of character. And then Ace is being grabbed by the arm, tugged away from him, and Sabo doesn't stop dragging him along until they're back outside. The sun is rising, but it's cold, and Ace can't find words to say. Every part of him wants to go back but he doesn't want to see that fear again, doesn't want to scare Luffy away.

Sabo pushes him down onto the ledge outside the window and sits down beside him, and neither speaks for a while.

"Somebody tried to...shoot you?" Ace manages to ask eventually. "You and Luffy?"

"Yeah - first when we were in the kitchen, then the main room. I stood in front of him but it was so loud, and so near, and...he hasn't spoken yet," Sabo finishes. "Ace, are you okay?"

"Are you?"

"Of course I am - this happens a lot, I just-" Sabo inhales sharply. "Ace, we need to talk. About a lot. About Luffy and Marco and..."

"And Law?"

"Yes," Sabo says quietly. "And Law."

There's a long silence. The sun is taking its time; the dawn is stretched tight like a spring, close to breaking but not quite there yet. "Fuck, Sabo, Luffy-"

"I know. I know, I-" Sabo swallows. "He's okay. Or, he will be."

Ace looks out over the Stacks, tucking his legs up against himself. For a long time it's as though he's going to say nothing, as though he's going to ignore Sabo for good.

"No more secrets?" he settles on eventually.

"No more secrets," Sabo agrees, then, "We'll work this out."

"I know." Ace takes a deep breath, and shifts so their shoulders are touching. "I know."

He opens his mouth again, after a long silence, and starts talking.

* * *

_Ace is seven, and the world is bright._

_"Marco!" he calls through a laugh, giggling and stumbling after the older boy. Marco's fifteen and grumpy and constantly arguing with Pops, but he's fun to play with and Ace loves him. "Marco, Marco, look!"_

_When Marco turns around, even though his shoulders are tightly drawn and he looks irritated, he still manages to smile. "Hey, Ace, you drew that? It's so good!"_

_Ace's wings curl with satisfaction. Through the electriglass above, the sky is clear and blue. "I know!" He holds the picture up to Marco's face. "Look! It's me, 'n you and Pops and Izo and Thatch! And Ray!"_

_"I can see," Marco laughs._

_Grass rustles around them, tall enough to come to Ace's waist, and it's peaceful. Ace doesn't really know what electriglass means, but he knows that it's what makes the world blue when it's meant to be grey._

_"Hey, Marco?" Ace asks, plopping down on the ground. Marco follows._

_"Yeah?"_

_"Pops said that it's blue in here, around Wakeshead Hall, but it's grey outside, right? Well, when're we gonna be able to see the outside? Are there more people out there? If it's grey, are they grey too?"_

_Marco's face darkens and he looks out, over the beautiful field towards Wakeshead. "Ace. I need you to listen to me, okay?"_

_"Okay…?"_

_Marco leans back and lies in the grass, and Ace copies the movement. "Ace, the world outside… Isn't a place you ever want to be. No matter what."_

_"Why not?"_

_"Years ago… years ago, Pops used to live outside. Out in the grey. There are huge cities out there but Ace, they're not like the ones you see in books. They're dirty and crowded and deadly – people die every day out there. They hate the Fae out there – people like you."_

_"But, why?"_

_Marco closes his eyes. "It's a long story, Ace. A long, long story."_

_"So if it's safe in here, then why don't we let the Fae live with us? We're happy and they're not, so why can't we help them?"_

_"You see this place, Ace? Look around. Wakeshead, a mansion big enough for us to live. Huge, sprawling fields. Crops and animals. A dome of electriglass around us all to keep the ash and the radiation out. Pops built this place to keep his children safe, and if people in the grey find out that we're here, they'll attack us- they'll hate us. They'll want what we've got."_

_"But how can you be sure?"_

_"Pops told me, Ace, and Pops is our father. And we gotta listen to him, okay?"_

_"Okay…" Ace sounds dubious._

_Marco reaches out and ruffles his hair lightly. They don't speak for a while._

_"Hey, Marco?"_

_"Yes, Ace?"_

_"What's 'radiation'?"_

_"Radiation is kinda like this disease – the people on the outside made it. It's spread everywhere now, everybody but here, and it'll kill you if you're exposed to it for long."_

_"How are people alive on the outside, then? In the cities?"_

_"In the cities, all the food they make is stuffed with drugs that help protect you from it. Pops told me. They have thing called 'mac rations' – it means macronutrient rations. Everybody eats them, and they protect them, but life is miserable. Things suck for the outsiders, Ace, trust me."_

_"And we can't try to make it better?" Ace asks in a small voice._

_"No, Ace. We can't."_

_Suddenly, there's a crack of thunder, so close that even the electriglass can't block it out. Ace flinches, sitting up, just as the blue of the sky above flickers and dies. The glass turns clear, power cutting out, and outside, it's all grey. The ash clouds are low and domineering, and Ace lets Marco grab his hand and together they run, hard, for Wakeshead._

_It takes three hours for power to return to the electriglass, and Ace watches at the sky flickers back to pleasant blue. And just like that they're in heaven again – it's bright, and the world is soft._

_But Ace has seen what's on the outside, and he's hooked._

_From that day forwards, Ace throws himself into his studies, desperate to learn more about the grey, about the people outside. He doesn't try to leave – because a part of him is still scared of it out there – but he begs Izo for more details on the outside, raids the library for books on a daily basis. History becomes a pastime, another world to escape to. And Ace's curiosity only grows with time._

_(some days, Ace looks into his grey eyes in the mirror and wonders whether there's something dark inside him, too)_

_But it all goes wrong when Ace is ten._

_He's stupid. So, so stupid. It's a bright, blue day – just as every day – and nobody's outside. There's only one entrance to the electriglass dome and there's nobody guarding it, and Ace just wants to take a peek. Just glance; nothing more._

_As soon as Ace opens the large metal door, however, the world goes red. An alarm screams to life, right next to his ear, and the dome lights up with flashing reds and whites. Ace doesn't think about it - he stumbles out of the door and runs for it, scared of getting caught, not paying attention to what he's running into. The door clangs shut behind him and then, all is silent. A lock clicks into place._

_From the outside, the electriglass dome is translucent and hard to make out. There's no sign of Wakeshead through the screen, and Ace feels a lick of cold dread tickle at his insides._

_It's so grey out here._

_Suddenly, a hand lands on Ace's shoulder. He tries to spin around, to protect himself like Thatch taught him, but something hard hits the back of his head. Stars spin before his eyes and his head lurches, and then everything fades._

_When he wakes up, the world is a much worse place._

_Slave traders. Slave traders, who roam the Wilds outside the cities for people to snatch. They tell Ace that he'll make a pretty ornament, that maybe they can get him plucked, that trees are so rare that they're going to use his skin to make paper. He doesn't believe them - he definitely doesn't, and he's definitely not scared, and he definitely doesn't wish he could go home so much that it hurts. They drag him through the grey district in chains and nobody steps forwards to help, nobody listens to Ace's cries. Nobody cares._

_When they get to a big building with boarded-up windows they shove Ace into a tiny room, through a door in a corridor of cell doors. It's dark and small and cramped. They shove a handful of macronutrients into his mouth and hold it closed until he swallows, and he scrapes up his already raw throat on the scratchy, dry pellets._

_"You'll be auctioned off tomorrow," one man tells Ace, twirling the ring of keys on his finger. "If nobody buys you, you'll be workin' for us. With them pretty wings, you'll go for a good price."_

_Ace watches his wingless shoulders disappear up the corridor, and that's when something inside him begins to crack._

* * *

"Ace?"

Ace jolts, feeling Sabo's hand on his arm. "Sorry, I just kinda... zoned out there."

"It's okay, it's okay. I get it." Sabo sounds like he doesn't know what to say. Ace registers that they've shifted closer, that his head is rested on the blonde's shoulder. The sky is still dull. "Fuck...Ace..."

"Yeah, I know," Ace replies weakly. "It does kinda suck." He takes a deep breath. "I think... I think that was when I started hating humans. That moment."

There's a long silence.

"Do you blame me?" Ace asks.

"Do you think I should?"

"I- Sabo, this is so messed up."

"I know."

"And I didn't mean to hate you, it just-"

"I know, I know."

There's a cough from inside, sounding like it's coming from Luffy.

"I don't blame you, Ace."

Ace draws in a sharp breath but the air doesn't feel like enough. He carries on regardless.

* * *

 _Ace isn't sold_.

_The auction is busted by the police. He tries to run to them, sure that they'll help him, but when he reaches the one with the shiny golden badge on his chest, the man takes one look at him and kicks him in the face. Ace wakes up back in his cell, bruised and swollen, and when the guard passes he begs him to let him out. He tells him that he's Pops' son, that he needs to get home. The guard kneels down in front of Ace and tells him, flat to his face, that his Pops would rather die than see Ace's pathetic face again. That they would give anything for Ace to never return. That they're never going to forgive him for leaving._

_Slowly, Ace starts to believe them._

_A week later, Ace is out - the police take the trafficking ring down and this time, he knows better than to hope that they'll help him. There are lashes across his back, bruises on his wrists and wounds on his heart but he runs anyway, and though he really, really wants to go back to Wakeshead... a part of him can't forget what the men said. Because why haven't they come to rescue him yet? What if they really do hate him...?_

_Ace can't bear to go from here to another place that would hurt him. So instead, he runs and runs and doesn't stop, spending days without sleeping, feet aching, trying to find some kind of refuge here, under the grey sky. People glare at him from every side - little human kids try to grab at his feathers as he passes and rip out them out painfully. Here, everybody is the enemy, and the humans are so, so_ _**cruel** _ _. Not like Marco, or Thatch. They're slipping into the background now, erased by the hatred of everybody else._

_The world is changing, and Ace does too._

_That's when he finds Luffy._

* * *

"We worked our way up," Ace finishes. "Slept whenever we couldn't walk any further, got used to things on the streets. We fought and fought and when I was fourteen, I got into gang work and managed to get us an apartment. And Luffy finally got to go to school."

Ace takes a deep breath and looks up. It's light, and Sabo's face is unreadable.

"And that's it. That's my story. Marco used to be my older brother - we used to live out in the wilds. And the Marco you know...?"

"He lives out in the wilds," Sabo confirms, "He's mentioned it. Blond, blue eyes, undercut...?"

Ace sighs heavily. "That's him. How do you know him?"

"I work evenings at a pub. He's there every Friday - and this Friday he saw your name on my phone, I think, and got suspicious."

Ace pulls away, crossing his legs and shifting so he and Sabo are facing each other. "Look, I can deal with that. But I've told you my story now. What's yours?"

* * *

_It's quiet in Sabo's house. It always is. Sabo's lived here for as long as he can remember, and he can't recall a day when it's been loud, or bright, or exciting - but he gets on with it. Things could be worse, after all._

_School is a refuge, but the teachers lie a lot - or at least, Sabo thinks they do. They talk about how the Fae are evil-doers, about how they want to infect society with their tainted DNA, about how they're lazy layabouts and criminals and job-stealers. But Sabo doesn't think it's true, not really; how can they be lazy, money-wasting and unemployed, but somehow be stealing jobs at the same time? And he knows that they can't all be criminals, and if they are, isn't it just because they live in places like the grey district? After all, it seems to him like it'd be pretty hard to not be a criminal if you were surrounded by them..._

* * *

Ace snorts. "You were smarter as a kid than most adults I know."

"Thanks," Sabo laughs. "The teachers hated me."

"You said they thought the Fae were tainting society - what did you think of that?" Ace leans back, crossing his arms over his knees. He doesn't look down.

Sabo shifts slightly. "I don't know. I guess I thought society was infected already; y'know, with radiation and people starving and growing up with my parents-"

"What about your parents?" Ace cuts in curiously.

At this point Sabo looks away completely, teeth gritted. He looks like he needs a moment and Ace lets him have it. "My parents weren't... the nicest people. Not at all."

A chill creeps over Ace's skin. He doesn't say anything.

"They were radicalists – their family got rich back during the infertility. They had some questionable views, I guess; anybody who couldn't or wouldn't give birth was trash to them. I's, half-breeds, hybrids. Eventually me."

"Oh - you're…"

"Yeah. I mentioned it to you, didn't I, back under the bridge?"

Ace nods, heart swelling slightly. Because he'd known that Sabo's life was tough, but he hadn't known that his parent had been  _that_  bad. "Yeah. When you said that they forced you out…?"

Nodding simply, Sabo looks away and continues, eyes jaded.

* * *

_"We'd like to welcome the proposition to the floor…"_

_There's a smattering of polite applause. Sabo smiles at the crowd and stands, shuffling his notes. It didn't take much effort to get into the junior debating championships – not many from his school applied. The structure dictates that Sabo can choose his own topic, being the sole participant, and he hasn't told anybody what his proposition is going to be. He doubts that they'll approve._

_As Sabo clears his throat, a sliver of fear settles in his throat. His parents are in the crowd. He steels his nerve and pushes past the terror, and begins to talk._

_"This house believes that the Fae should be entitled to the same statute of human rights as humans are."_

_His voice sounds young and small but it rings over the crowd, and a murmur ripples through the room. Sabo watches his mother's face contort into a snarl. Somebody laughs – then somebody else. His face reddens._

_"To start my proposition," Sabo says, "I would like to ask you question. How would you feel if you were bodily attacked by a Fae, and the Fae wasn't prosecuted? What would your reaction be if the crime went undocumented, and the harm to you went uncompensated? It would be unpleasant, frustrating, angering. You would be outraged, I'm sure._

_"Well, ladies and gentlemen, this is how Fae all over the city feel every day. They're capable of emotion just as you are, able to use logic just as you are. They are able to hurt just as we are. But over ninety percent of crimes committed by humans against Fae, and over ninety-five percent of physical assaults, go undocumented. On the off-chance that the guilty human is prosecuted, they are five times less likely to receive jail time than Fae for the same crime."_

_Sabo is pacing now, gesturing naturally, getting into his flow. The notes are abandoned; he doesn't need them. His opponent, a blonde boy with an upturned nose, raises his hand and snaps, "Point of information. The Fae have much higher levels of crime anyway – they're more temperamental than us, they're more likely to commit a crime again. Their brains don't work in the same way."_

_"Wrong," Sabo bites out viciously. "It's been proven that the reason the levels of crimes committed by Fae are higher is because of socioeconomic factors, not biological factors. I implore you to understand – we have oppressed a sect of society so much that they live in small, overpopulated areas filled with crime anyway. The Fae have no schools, they have limited jobs, and it's because_ _**we** _ _refuse to provide them with the necessary resources for a good quality of life. People, if an entire group are deprived of education, hygiene and jobs, are you seriously surprised that they have higher levels of crime?"_

_In the crowd, Sabo's father glowers at him and Sabo shivers. Still, he refuses to back down._

_The other boy stands up, scowling. "It's not the fault of the law that the Harpies aren't smart enough to sort out their own homes."_

_"Point of information," Sabo replies smugly, "'Harpy' is a racial slur, and use of such requires automatic disqualification."_

* * *

"You won?"

"Over and over and over," Sabo agrees. "They threatened me with expulsion, they wrote articles about how I was betraying the human race, but I didn't stop. When my parents stopped me from going to any more junior debates, I snuck out and went to adult ones instead, and I tried and tried for years."

"How did your parents take it?" Luffy asked. He joined them at some point during the story, and he's pressed between the pair, eyes red and puffy. There's a little more colour in his cheeks, and his hands have stopped shaking.

"Not well." Sabo shudders. "I wasn't going the way they wanted me to go and they hated me for it."

"They're assholes," Luffy sums up eloquently.

"My thoughts exactly," Ace agrees. Sabo smiles slightly.

"Thanks. Thank you."

"Anytime." Ace leans forwards. "I gotta ask, though… how does this all tie into you knowing Trafalgar Goddamn Law?"


	11. My Home

The slap is a shock to Sabo's senses, and he lets his head hang low in the aftermath. His left ear is ringing. His cheek stings like fire. There's a cut there - he can feel it. His mother must be wearing her rings.

"Again!" Outlook III storms. His cane taps on the floor as he paces. The open window behind Sabo is letting a draught in and he can feel it on his back.

"I'm sorry, father," Sabo tries.

"You're not!" His mother gets right in his face, screeching the words like they're cursed. "You never have been! You do this all the time, Sabo Outlook, when are you going to grow up?!"

She reaches out like she's going to throttle him and Sabo stumbles back, his hip hitting the window pane. There's ash on his clothes, and it smudges against the spotlessly white wall.

Looking at Sabo like he's some kind of slug, Outlook says, "Get upstairs, filthy little brat. We'll decide your punishment later." Sabo hesitates and Outlook barks, "GO!"

Sabo's room is cold. He screams soundlessly at the door once he gets inside, frustration rushing up inside him, but when the lock clicks into place on the other side it all just melts away. When the rage disappears it leaves him feeling small and empty. Another night, another debate, another time getting caught sneaking back through the window. Sabo wonders vaguely, as he flops down onto his bed, what the punishment is going to be this time. He wants to hope that it won't be that bad, but he can't be sure.

Then again - as always, he reminds himself that it could be worse.

There's a cork board across the room and Sabo pads over to it, flicking the light on. His room has always been a refuge - it's the one place his parents and the servants never go, and it's kind of a grudging agreement that he can do what he likes with it. The cork board is large, covering most of the far wall, and covered with cut-out newspaper articles that proclaim titles like:

**_'HIGH DISTRICT OFFICIALLY BARS NON-HUMANS'_ **

**_'OUTLOOK WINS LAWSUIT AGAINST VIOLENT HARPY'_ **

**_'UNNAMED BOY WINS PARLIAMENTARY-STYLE DEBATE ON FAE RIGHTS'_ **

The articles are important, and they've taken a lot of effort to compile, but they're not what he's looking for. Sabo reaches out and snags two cards off the corner of the board, taking them over to the window and sitting in the sill to read them. The first one is plain and green, with a messy drawing of a polar bear on the front.

_'Hey Sabo!_   
_Happy birthday! law doesn't wanna write on here but he wishes you a happy bday too_   
_Good luck with your parents,_   
_Penguin, Shachi, Bepo, Lami and Law'_

It's short but the note means a lot to Sabo - even though he knows every word, he still smiles at the sight of it. The other card is more immaculate, more neat and a lot shorter, but it means a lot nonetheless.

_'Sabo-ya,_   
_Merry Christmas. Good luck with the Outlooks. We're in your corner._   
_Law'_

The first card is only a few weeks old, from Sabo's thirteenth, but the other is more than a year old. Neither of them is that important, not in the grand scheme of things, but Sabo loves them anyway. It makes it easier, knowing that there's somebody in his corner.

* * *

"How did you meet Law and his group in the first place?" Ace asks. "They don't seem like the type to hang around the high district."

Sabo laughs. "You're not gonna believe me, but I met him through school when we were kids. He went to school with me until we were twelve and he dropped out. Couldn't afford tuition anymore."

Ace's mouth falls open. "Holy crap... seriously?!"

"Yep! He was studying medicine - wanted to be the first Fae doctor. After he dropped out we stayed in touch, and he helped me with the debates. Soon I started hanging out with his gang - though they were all really young, so not much of a gang. They kinda... got me through it."

Luffy grins. The sky is still lightening, and the dull light glints off his toothy grin. "Traffic sounds awesome."

"It's Trafalgar, Lu. Trafalgar Law."

"That's what I said!"

* * *

It's past twelve when Sabo finally risks sneaking out. It's tricky, especially when it's essential not to make any noise, but by half past twelve, he's on the street outside and making a break for Law's place. It's a long trek, not to mention that it's on an empty stomach and not enough sleep, but it's worth it when he gets there.

"Sabo!" Lami calls as she opens the door, and Sabo accepts her hug with a small laugh. "Hey, everybody, Sabo's here!"

It's warm inside. Penguin and Shachi aren't much younger than Sabo and they greet him eagerly, laughing along with Lami as Sabo trips over the doorstep. Law is sitting at the kitchen table of the tiny flat and he smirks at Sabo, spinning a scalpel around his fingers.

"You scare me..." Sabo says half-seriously, sliding into the seat beside him.

"I know," Law shoots back. "By the way - Cora-san said to tell you that you were great tonight. He's at work now, but he watched the debate."

Sabo's heart swells. Cora is Law and Lami's guardian - and Penguin, Shachi and Bepo's, and kind of Sabo's too. He does his best to support Sabo, using the fact that he's human to help sneak Sabo into the places he needs to be. He's great. Sabo's willing to admit it; they all adore him. Even Law.

"I can't stay for long," Sabo sighs, "The Outlooks are really, really angry this time."

Law frowns, reaching out to poke at the cut on his cheek. "I can tell."

From across the table, Bepo looks at them with wide eyes. "Did your parents do that?"

"Yeah - but it's not as bad as it looks." Sabo paws at the shallow cut and tries not to look up. "Trust me, I'm fine. And you know I'll be out of there as soon as I can."

"Yeah," Law agrees, "We know."

* * *

"Didn't they ever help you to get away?" Luffy's frowning.

"They said they wanted to," Sabo says vaguely. "But my parents would've torn up the city to find me, they would've gotten hurt. The Outlooks don't like people taking their property." He can hear the bitterness in his own voice.

"You're not their property," Ace says.

"I was."

"Yeah," Luffy says in a voice like Sabo's being stupid, "But you ain't now. You're ours."

"That isn't what I meant, Luffy-" Ace tries to say; Luffy's laugh drowns him out, and Sabo finds himself laughing too.

"So you were debating all the time, and friends with Law - holy shit, _friends_ with _Law_ , I can barely believe he has _emotions_ \- what next?"

"Time went on, I guess." Sabo gives a heavy sigh. "I carried on debating. My parents hated me more and more with every debate; they put locks on my door, bars on my window, but I still managed to get out there and go to rallies and debates and marches. By the time we were fourteen, I was signed up as a junior journalist at a civil rights column and Law and the others were getting into the criminal world and not looking back."

"And then?"

Sabo sighs heavily. "And then they betrayed me."

* * *

Law, Bepo, Shachi and Penguin pull of their third large scale robbery without a hitch. It's only one of the smaller banks, but they come away rolling in it, with enough money to send Lami to the all-girls school she's always wanted to go to and feast like kings the night before she leaves. The four, as well as Lami, Sabo and Cora, sit around their prize on a picnic blanket. It's hardly luxury - piles of mac, a few slices of ham, a tiny cake and a bag of peppermints - but it's the best meal that Sabo's ever eaten.

It's over this feast that Law finally asks the question.

"When are you gonna join us permanently, Sabo-ya?"

Sabo jolts, raising an eyebrow. "Is that you're way of inviting me, or...?"

Law shrugs. "I guess it is. We've known you for two years, surely you're one of us... right?"

"Of course I am!" So eager to defend himself, Sabo doesn't stop to think about the strangeness of the question.

And that's when it all starts.

The weeks pass and they start making plans. Law says that if Sabo wants to officially leave the Outlook family he needs to make a stir - he needs to make people know his name, he needs to make the Outlooks ashamed to have him as a son. They decide that he needs a grand exit. To go out in a blaze of glory, and throw himself into the gang world with a bang. They decide that, on his fifteenth, Sabo will burn down one of his parents' estates - the Blueton estate, on the edge of the industrial district - and take public credit for it.

Sabo doesn't bother to ask how he'll do so - he doesn't bother to wonder about the aftermath.

They don't tell Cora or Lami about the plan. It's fun, to plan it all, to have an evil scheme. It makes Sabo feel powerful and for a while, he forgets about debating and protesting and everything but Law.

His fifteenth birthday rolls around, and the plan grinds into action.

* * *

"I started the fire," Sabo says quietly, "At midnight. And for a while it was kinda fun - to burn stuff. Gave you a rush. I stood on the roof and waited for Law to carry out his part of the plan, to get me down."

"And he didn't?" Ace guesses.

"He didn't." Sabo coughs and ploughs on, words tumbling over themselves, as if he's rushing to get them all out. "The fire got closer and closer and I tried to run - but he'd blocked the exits and I was completely alone. I noticed something outside the window and just suddenly knew exactly what had happened - 'Trafalgar' was sprayed onto the ground outside. The plan was never for me to be able to leave my parents - Law never cared about that. The real plan was for Law and his gang to get more notoriety, and to get the pesky noble kid out of the way."

Sabo cuts off, biting tone resounding in the morning air. Luffy presses against his side, looking at the ground, and nobody speaks for a while.

"How did you get out?" Luffy asks into his shoulder.

"Cora came for me. He found out about the plan - once Shachi, Penguin and Bepo found out about what Law really planned, they ran to him for help. They were all just kids. We all were. Cora got me out of there, luckily, but..."

The sun is nearly up. It's obscured by grey and Ace looks out past the city limits, past the skyscrapers and slums, to the electriglass dome that he knows must still be there. Where everything is blue. Where everything is even more fake than it is in the high district.

Sabo clears his throat, wringing his shaking hands. "Cora didn't make it," he manages. "I got out, ran to Law. We parted ways and when I got back to my parents I flipped. My father tried to- to punish me for sneaking out, and I was covered in burns and bruises and ash, and I just told him to fuck himself. Told them all to fuck themselves. Told them I wasn't into girls and I was never going to have kids and I was never going to be the child he'd wanted. I told my parents what we did, about what happened to Blueton, and then I left with nothing. They were all too happy for me to leave."

All the tension seems to leave Sabo at once, almost as if the words bunched up inside of him were the only thing providing him with life force.

"I'm sorry," he says quietly. "I guess... that's how I know Law. Or, _knew_ Law. It was a long time ago. What about you?"

Ace shrugs. "I was in a scrape a few years back and he helped me out. And plus, there aren't many people in the gang world who don't know old Law. He's either everybody's friend or everybody's enemy; it changes daily."

There's a slightly awkward silence and then Luffy says the thing that none of them had been expecting. "Who cares, though?"

"Excuse me?"

"Who cares?" Luffy repeats. "It doesn't matter that your parents and Traffic were idiots, Sabo, and it doesn't matter that you've only got us. Who cares if they don't want us?" Luffy nods out across the Stacks, into the light filtering between the huge structures. "They're all just pricks, we shouldn't care about them."

"You're ridiculous," Sabo says, but he's laughing even as he chokes back his emotion.

"You're ridiculous but you're right, little brother," Ace snickers. He glances at Sabo and they exchange grins and the air seems to lighten. "And if it's anything, I'd rather be on the outside with my brother than anywhere else." Ace thinks for a moment, and then goes to correct himself, crossing his arms. "Brothers."

The sky gets lighter still. It's nice.

"Hey," Luffy says abruptly, "Shouldn't you move out of here now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, somebody tried to kill you - what if they try again?"

Sabo tilts his head to the side. "It's not as simple as just leaving, Lu. I've been here for two years - I can't just go."

"Why not?"

"I-"

"Quit nagging him," Ace cuts in with a groan. "Look, we get it, you wanna stay here. Just... if it gets bad, we've got a spare bed..."

"No you don't," Sabo sighs.

"No, we don't," Ace agrees. "Worth a try?"

"Nah, you shouldn't have even tried," Sabo teases.

* * *

_Sabo's face is covered with burns - he's bleeding heavily, panting hard, and his eyes are aflame. He stands in the doorway, lanky frame rattling with every breath, and Law can't move. He's paralysed, even as Sabo storms in and slams the door and stands in front of him like a tortured animal. Bepo, Shachi and Penguin are crowded in the corner. Nobody moves for a moment._

_Then it breaks - Sabo swipes blood from the corner of his mouth, steps forwards and gets right into Law's face and_ _**explodes** _ _._

_"I trusted you! I TRUSTED YOU!"_

_Movement returns - Law stumbles back and Sabo lunges at him, throwing forwards a fist, missing his face by inches. The momentum makes the blonde stumble forwards and collide with a table and he nearly falls, but just about manages to hold himself up. The burn over his eye is raw and charred, leaking pus._

_"What the hell was I thinking - why did I even consider getting close to you?! You bastard! You goddamn bastard!"_

_He's choking on his words now, spitting them like poison, and Law's stomach sinks with foreboding. It's the first time he's ever seen Sabo come apart, even after the worst nights with the Outlooks, even at his lowest._

_Sabo takes another swing, lunging like a wild animal at Law, hitting every part of him that he can reach. None of the others cut in and Law wonders if it's because they think he deserves it._

_Law steps back and Sabo falls to his knees, staring at the ground, shaking and bleeding and running out of energy. His limbs are shaking so hard that it's like he's being shocked but the adrenaline is slowly beginning to seep from his frame. And regret gradually starts to pour into Law's veins._

_"He's dead," Sabo whispers. His voice cracks. "Cora. He's dead."_

_Law's whole world shatters. He feels his head reel; the earth seems to shake beneath his feet_ ; _the words don't process, stuck resounding in his head._

_Sabo rises, clawing his way up and leaning heavily against the table. "He's dead," he says, voice rising to a bellow. "He's dead! Because of you! BECAUSE ALL YOU CARED ABOUT WAS YOURSELF!"_

_"It was for Lami," Law chokes out. "I swear it was for Lami. I wanted to get more money, I wanted to keep her in school, I wanted..."_

_"Fuck what you wanted!" Law has never heard Sabo swear but now he's cursing like a sailor, screaming until his throat sounds scratchy and raw. "A man is dead because of what you wanted! Dead!"_

_Sabo steps back. He's a flame in Law's wobbling, teary vision, blonde hair stained with blood, covered in ashes as if he's just been extinguished, or he's about to burst into flames._

_"So fuck you, Trafalgar Law. Go to hell." Sabo's voice is cold and he turns away and staggers towards the door. He looks over his shoulder in the doorway and says, "I hope Lami's okay."_

_And just like that, he's gone. The door slams and Law falls back against the wall. A huge part of him wants to run after him, to apologise. An even bigger part is filled with so much regret, so much goddamn regret that it's hard to breathe._

_Everything went wrong._

-And Law wakes up with a snap.

It's midday, judging by the light streaming into the room. His phone is buzzing wildly on the desk but he ignores it, sitting up and scrubbing his face. His back is aching, a side affect of falling asleep with your head against the desk, but he ignores it.

There's a note stuck to the door handle - _'Make sure you eat something!'_ -but it's written in Bepo's chicken scratch so, almost automatically, Law ignores it. He's used to little messages about taking care of himself but he's never listened to them and he's not about to start now. Standing, the surgeon stretches and traipses across the room, through the door and into the kitchen.

It's brighter in the kitchen, and there's a mac ration lying on the table that Law promptly ignores too. Bepo means well, sure, but he's... overbearing. And Law can take care of himself. The front door has four locks on it, and there's still a small crack in the frame from where Sabo slammed it all those years ago.

 _Sabo_. Law had never even expected to hear his name again. He hasn't said it for years - most of the time it's just 'the brat from Blueton' or 'the noble kid'. It makes it feel less real. It's hard to say Cora's name too, especially on bad days, so Law avoids letting it slip. Most of the time, it works.

But even ignoring this won't make it go away. Sabo's alive. Living on the Stacks, buddy-buddy with Portgas D Ace, but alive. He must've gotten away from the Outlooks; Law isn't surprised. Sabo wouldn't survive in a place like that, not for long.

The incessant buzzing starts again from the other room. With an exasperated groan, Law strides back into his room, scoops up his phone and practically punches the green button.

"Hello?"

"Trafalgar?"

Kidd's voice is rough and exasperated, and he sounds just about as grumpy as Law feels.

"Kidd-ya. If you're calling me for some bullcrap joke again-"

"Shuddup. I've got some info for you."

Law's lips curl into a smirk. "Oh?"

"Yeah, yeah - you heard about that thing with old man Whitebeard, right? One of his kids burnt down that old place Newgate used to own."

"Who didn't hear about that?"

"Fair point," Kidd grumbles. "Listen, lemme get my point across, you prick. Turns out not everything was burnt. Coupl'a my guys were nosing around, and there's some stuff in a fireproofed box they never got. Nothin' we can make sense of, of course, but it mentions something you were poking around at a while ago. Electriglass."

Even though Law feels his face break into shock, he keeps his voice controlled. "What do you want for it?"

Damnitt; he answered a second too quickly. Kidd would've picked up on that.

He obviously did. "Hm. I don't know, Trafalgar, how much are you offering?"

Law drums his fingers on the table and makes a quick, reckless decision. "We just managed to wrangle a shipment of industrial-size batteries. We'd be willing to offer a quarter of the, no more. Do you accept?"

There's silence on the other end of the line before Kidd bursts into laughter. Law can hear him slapping his hand on his knee. "Damn, Trafalgar. You really want this, don't you?"

"Call it me being nice."

"You? Nice?" The laughter rises in volume, crackling through the phone, and Law's skin crawls. "Goddamn, should I be scared?"

"Do you accept or not?" Law asks impatiently.

"...Sure. I'll take that. Your loss." Kidd's laughter trails off. "We'll drop the box off outside of your base."

"The batteries will be at your den by tomorrow morning," Law says shortly. "Don't try anything."

"Yeah, yeah, got it." There's a short pause and Law is about to hang up and Kidd says, "Oh, yeah, didj'a hear about what happened up on the Stacks?"

Sighing internally - Kidd is such a goddamn time waster and he knows it - Law says, "No, I didnt."

"Man, seriously? It was wild. Everybody's talkin' about it. Apparently one of Blackbeard's guys shot up one of the trailers and nobody knows why. And Blackbeard's acting shifty as hell too - his movements are all over the place. And rumour has it-" Kidd lowers his voice with a dark laugh, as if he knows exactly how much his words are going to effect Law. "That it's got somethin' to do with Portgas-"

Law hangs up. For a moment he stands still, shoulders drawn tight. Then, he turns around and flops back onto his bed.

He's got a lot to think about.

* * *

Zoro pads across the wooden floor quietly, trying not to make a sound. _He's_ still asleep, and it would be better for everybody if it stayed that way. Zoro creeps around furniture and across the landing, and slips into his and Chopper's room without a sound. It's tense and terrifying, having to be so silent, but it's an everyday occurrence in Zoro's home; if this place can be considered a home at all.

"Chopper?" he asks quietly. "Hey, you awake?"

The small lump on the bed shifts slightly and Chopper's downy head raises. His face is visibly sweaty, and he looks tired, but he still manages to smile at his brother. Zoro kneels beside the bed and grins back, though it feels forced on his face.

"How you feeling?"

Chopper tries to sit up and it doesn't quit work out so he settles on shifting upwards a little, coughing harshly. The sound is wet and rattling in his small chest. "I'm okay. It hasn't happened. And he's been asleep the whole time – since about 0300, I think. How are your friends? Luffy and Nami and the others?"

It's touching that Chopper seems to care so much about the wellbeing of teens he's never met. "They're good, Chopper – same as always. They're all eager to meet you."

Chopper beams. "I can't wait!"

Zoro doesn't mention the low ache in his chest; he doesn't bring attention to the fact that Chopper will probably never be able to. "Me neither, kid." Standing, Zoro reaches out and opens a nearby cabinet. "Sorry to say this, but it's time for your meds."

Chopper makes a face but nods, trying to keep a neutral expression as the needle enters his arm. When it's over he smiles and says, "It didn't hurt at all!"

"You were brave as hell," Zoro smirks back.

"Thanks- I mean, I don't need you to tell me that!" Chopper dances a little where he's sitting, and it does a little to draw away from the flush of his cheeks, the discoloured patches on his skin.

But not for long. Not really.


	12. White Marble

Luffy is a naturally cheerful person, fiercely optimistic, stubbornly happy no matter where he is. It's hard to imagine a  _happier_  Luffy, but at the same time... Something about him changes. In the weeks following the stabbing, when the group feel fragmented, fragile and scared, he soars over them with his endlessly sunny disposition. Even though he's always happy, without fail, he seems even brighter now and none of the group have any idea why.

Right now, for example, he's hooked his knees around a pipe across the ceiling and is swinging over Zoro's head, a lazy back-and-forth rhythm over and over and over. His arms are loose, hanging down over Zoro's head and brushing his hair occasionally. Zoro himself looks miffed but not angry enough to stop him. Robin watches them quietly from the corner and doesn't interrupt. The others are scattered through the room too; the only one missing is Usopp, who leads a life chaotic enough that sometimes they see nothing of him for weeks and other times he spends every minute in the den for days. Nobody questions it much anymore.

Yawning, Luffy breaks the relative silence by swinging his arms up, grabbing the pipe and letting his legs dangle down. Then he lets go, dropping down next to Zoro with a grin. "Boo!"

Zoro doesn't even bother pretending to be surprised. "Hey, Luffy."

"I didn't scare ya?"

"Nope."

Luffy pouts but there's still something joyful in the lines of his forehead and the frame of his shoulders. "Damnitt!"

From across the room, Nami yawns and rolls over, curled up on a mattress. She doesn't look stressed when she's half-asleep, not nearly as tense as she always seems to be. The air is relaxed even though everything that's happened, and Luffy's grin lightens it.

But it breaks soon enough. "I gotta go," Luffy chirps suddenly, hopping up." Me and Ace are meeting up with somebody!"

"Who?"

"Somebody!" Luffy laughs gleefully and picks his way over Sanji, who's reading through an old notebook on the floor. "Somebody awesome."

"Are we gonna meet this awesome person any time soon?" Nami asks flatly.

"Maybe! I don't know!" Laughing, Luffy darts towards the window. "I'll be back over tonight, if I can!"

Then, suddenly, something seems to hit him. He stops, smile freezing on his face.

"What is it?" Sanji asks.

"Do you know anything about the Blueton Fire?"

Zoro raises an eyebrow, sitting up. "Who doesn't? We all heard about that - 'cept maybe Usopp. It was a big deal. Didn't one of the Outlook estates get burnt down?"

"Yeah, that was it," Sanji says vaguely. "They had this huge manhunt for the guy who did it, but then the Outlook family just up and called the whole thing off. Said they knew who the criminal was and that they'd deal with him in their own way."

"Wasn't Trafalgar Law involved?" Franky pipes up from the corner, buried in screws and bolts. "People kept sayin' his name was near the crime scene. But it never got confirmed - that's probably what he wanted, to start a stir, right?"

"Yeah," Luffy says, looking at the ground.

"What is it?" Robin asks.

"It's... nothing. I was just wondering. Look, I gotta go." Luffy grins again and hops up into the window pane. And once again there's something brighter about him, something cheerful and energetic and alive in his demeanour. "See you, guys!"

When he's gone there's a long silence, before Zoro jokes quietly, "He's so perky, you'd swear he got laid last night."

Nami smacks him hard on the arm, and laughter breaks out through the room and it feels real.

* * *

Spending time with Sabo is  _awesome_.

Conversation comes easily, even as easily as it does with just Ace and Luffy. Sabo's fun to talk to - he knows little, random facts about the weirdest shit that nobody's ever heard of, and he's smart and sarcastic and a piece of shit, completely, but it kinda works 'cause he's really nice, too. Kinda.

Of course, the Stacks still suck. That's one tiny drawback. Right now, Sabo is sitting on the kitchen table and Ace in a chair and Luffy's lying on the floor, windmilling his arms through the air madly. They talk a little, share the last mac, and Sabo and Luffy take it in turns reading out one of the nuclear protocol booklets in stupid voices. It's late, dark outside but light in here, and surprisingly warm. Finally (it's late this year), summer is rolling in like a storm.

"Okay," Luffy says suddenly. "I spy with my little eye, something beginning with-"

"I hate this game," Ace interrupts.

"Shush. Something beginning with... A."

Sabo thinks for a minute, swinging his legs. "Ace losing the will to live."

"Nope!"

"Hm... Aerosol?"

"No!"

"Ace?"

"Nope, not him."

"Adjective?"

"No!"

"Achievement?"

"Nope!"

"...Antidisestablishmentarianism?"

"What the fuck does that even  _mean_ ," Ace mumbles into the table.

"No way." Luffy shakes his head disappointedly. "You're no good at this game."

"Okay, fine. I'll bite. What was it?" Sabo asks interestedly.

"Alarm!" Luffy points over at the rusted old fire alarm on the ceiling. It doesn't work anymore - and doesn't really have much use anyway, seeing as Sabo doesn't have a working cooker - but it still counts.

"Damnitt!" Sabo curses. "You win."

"Whoop!"

"Bullshit!" Ace pipes up. "Nah, no way, there's no way that counts as an alarm!"

"Sabo said it does!" Luffy grins.

"Look at it! It's barely even in one piece!"

"Still counts!"

"Yeah, well, you're stupid," Ace concludes.

" _You're_  stupid!"

"No,  _you're_ -"

"Alright, calm down children," Sabo interrupts with a shit-eating grin. "Starting to look like the election of 2016 in here."

"Oooh, that was a low blow," Ace jokes. He doesn't remember the details, but there's no way he could forget learning about that infamous vote. Specifically,  _that_  infamous candidate. "Hey, who's who?"

Sabo pretends to think for a moment, crossing his legs. "Hmm...you strike me as a Donald kinda guy."

"Oi!"

"It's true!" Sabo mock-examines him. "It's the hair. And the lips. And the voice. And-"

"You're such an asshole."

"Hey, does that mean I'm Clint?" Luffy pipes up.

Ignoring his surprise that Luffy knows anything about history, Ace nods. "Clinton, Luffy. Hilary Clinton."

Sabo bursts out laughing. "I can see the resemblance - it's the teeth!"

Ace joins in, and even though it's obvious that Luffy doesn't get the joke he starts laughing too.

"You're a piece of shit," Ace chokes out through his laughter.

"I'd rather be a piece of shit and certifiably non-Donald Trump than anything else," Sabo shoots back, poking his tongue out.

The night wears on.

* * *

It's been three weeks since the shooting at Sabo's, three weeks since they finally started spending time together, and Ace wants to scream.

"Sorry, what was that?" he asks Blackbeard in the most monotonous voice he can manage.

"I said," Blackbeard chuckles, "I've got some... mates over. Some human mates. Some human mates that I need to impress. And you know, they could use some entertainment. You up for it?" Blackbeard asks in a voice that implies that Ace very much doesn't have a choice.

 _'Why can't you do it?'_ Ace wants to ask. _'Why do you get to hide your wings and pretend to be one of them and laugh?'_

He says nothing except, "Alright. I'll be here tonight."

* * *

The bruises sting as Sabo dabs at them with a wet cloth. "Ouch," the blonde says sympathetically, "The skin's broken here."

"Sorry about this," Ace says for the sixth time, without really hearing the words as they leave his mouth. Then, "Please don't tell Luffy."

"I doubt he won't see the bruises..."

"He thinks I'm on a three-day job. I told him that I'd be gone for a while, just in case it got too bad and I broke a bone or something," Ace says. He winces as the cloth rubs against a tender spot.

"Sorry." Sabo goes back in, a little gentler. "I would ask you why you let them beat you up like that, but I guess the answer's pretty obvious, huh?"

Ace's teeth are gritted. "Luffy. Gotta do it for him."

Sabo sighs, wiping the blood on his fingers on his trousers. "You're ridiculous."

"I know," Ace says simply.

There's quiet for a while. It's been half an hour since Ace clawed his way up here, maybe a little more. It was a waste of water to do this, sure, one that Sabo could've done without; but he's willing to do it in a heartbeat. The dark patch over Ace's eye is too bright and bold to ignore, and so is the gash on his cheek, and so is his split lip.

"So what - their idea of entertainment is just... beating on some Fae they've ever met?" Sabo asks to break the silence.

"Pretty much." Ace sighs and then winces as he shifts his bruised wings. "They wanna feel powerful, though. They tell me to fight back, but it was five against one and..."

"And it's fun for them?"

"Yes," Ace says resolutely.

There's silence again for a while. Sabo's trailer isn't as cold as always - today it must've been burning hot in the springtime sun, and some of that heat has lingered into the night.

"I've been in the ring a few times before-" Ace tries.

"That doesn't make it any better." Sabo pulls back, dropping the wet cloth into the sink. "Alright, I've done pretty much all I can. Most of the bruises should fade in a few weeks, and the cuts have stopped bleeding. Not sure what to do about your wings."

"They should heal on their own." Ace stands and for a moment, neither of them is sure of what to do next. Ace glances at the window.

"Stay here for the night," Sabo decides. "If you told Luffy that you'd be gone for a while then you need somewhere to stay, right?"

"Are you sure that it's-"

"Absolutely sure, Ace."

* * *

It's quiet uptown tonight. It's not like the grey district – it's not a constant hive of activity and energy. The soaring skyscrapers, ashy giants against the midnight sky, are unlit and abandoned. The workers have gone home – the doors are all locked, the windows bolted, and the streets are silent and tranquil and still. It gives Ace a thrill to destroy the silence as he smashes through the glass front of a tall, multi-storey ambassadors' centre, throwing his body up against the surface, feeling it shatter under him. He lands on his ass and Sabo and Luffy burst into muffled, breathy laughter.

An alarm blares through the empty building for a moment, but only for a moment. When it cuts out abruptly the three are left in complete silence, Ace sitting in a pile of broken glass, air rushing through the empty pane. Sabo and Luffy pick their way through and for a minute, the trio stand back-to-back in the huge entrance hall, staring around. It's dark – the only light in the room is from a few dull emergency exit signs along the wall, which cast greenish stains across the ground. Above, a large chandelier made of white-stained glass tinkles quietly in the wind. The air is brewing with fireflies tonight.

"Look- the escalator," Sabo indicates quietly. "We can get up to the top from there."

"Boring," Luffy gripes, but there's still something electrifying about clambering up the motionless metal staircase, up and up and up into the next room. The gallery is just as still as the entrance hall had been, dark but for the reflections of the green signs, and shadowy paintings glare down at the trio from all of the walls. This room is even more high-ceilinged than the last, stretching up and up above them, wide enough that Ace can't see either end of it without squinting. There's another escalator ahead, just across the gallery, that leads to the next floor.

"Hey," Ace says suddenly. "Race you to the roof?"

The eerie stillness shatters and suddenly Sabo is running, feet pounding on the marble floor. The emergency lights smear into messy blurs in his vision as he picks up his pace, running harder than he's ever ran before to reach the escalator. Ace is neck-and-neck with him, hair blowing back as he laughs madly into the darkness, and Luffy is already trying to spider his way up onto the next level without using the escalator at all, trying to climb onto one of the paintings to reach a small balcony above.

Adrenaline shoots through his veins; a pulse races along his skin; Sabo throws himself forwards and sprints up the escalator, Ace right on his heels, tripping and stumbling and hollering. A hand grapples at his ankle and Ace gives a ragged war cry; then they're at the top, collapsing in a heap on the cold floor, laughing and panting under the green lights. Luffy reaches them a moment later, skidding on his knees and colliding with the pair and sending all three brothers smashing into the wall. An elbow buries itself in Sabo's ribs and a bony knee hits him hard in the nose, but with the rush through his bones, the thrill of the chase, it doesn't hurt.

"How far are we from the roof?" Luffy gasps through his laughter as they lie there, pressed against the wall, Sabo laughing at the forlorn look on Ace's face as he realises that he came second.

"I dunno - not that far, right?" Ace asks.

"This is one of the tallest buildings in the area - I think we've got a while to go." Sabo stands and stretches, popping his knuckles. "Let's head up."

Sabo doesn't really remember how all this happened. Luffy wanted something to do, Ace wanted something to distract him from Blackbeard and Sabo was dragged in somehow, because the pair seem to consider him somewhat of a comrade now and he doesn't disagree with the sentiment. There's not much to do for fun in the city, least of all for Fae, so breaking into something quickly became a pretty obvious contender. And what better choice than the ambassadors' building?

Each level that passes is a little lighter, the shadows a little more stark against the icy floor. It's twilight and the city is dark, ash choking the buildings, but a little light seeps through. Green is engrained into Sabo's irises as more exit signs flash by, indicating fire escapes at intervals. Each room seems larger, huge expanses stretching high up above them, white glass covering every surface. The building feels like a skeleton, hollow and echoing, and the trio clamber through its ribcage right up to the top.

Finally, after what feels like hours of creeping through the huge, empty building, they reach a small flight of stairs on the top floor, with a sign that tells that they lead to the roof. Luffy cheers and sprints up, Ace hot on his heels, and Sabo pounds up the steps after them with a grin.

When they get to the roof, however, all three of them freeze.

The view is  _breathtaking_. Sabo's heart catches in his ribcage; he feels his body freeze up. Because he's lived in this city for years, he knows it inside-out, but he's never thought to call it anything close to beautiful. But from up here, it's...

"Holy crap," Ace whispers. His hair is whipped back in the wind and his wings are splayed out behind him, and he looks free up here. But Sabo can't draw his eyes away from the view for too long - it takes so long to absorb it all.

The city is splayed out like a multi-layered canvas below, greyish brown, stretching out towards the horizon. Sabo can see it all from up here, night wind blowing into his face. The Stacks pile high on the edges of the city, looming and smoky, and just in front of them is the grey district. The high district is walled in from the rest of the city, houses well-lit because nobody in the high district has to worry about electricity bills or money or anything at all, really. It's dark and quiet and still but so wide, so full and sprawling and heartstoppingly high up.

Luffy whoops then and it echoes loudly through the air, loud and bold. He races forwards and teeters right on the edge, looking down eagerly; Sabo's heart just about stops in his chest. "Hey, look, Sabo! Look down there!"

Ace looks a little green. "If you don't step back right now I swear to god-"

Laughing, Luffy dances backwards away from the edge. "You're so pale! You scared?"

"Fuck off!"

Sabo walks cautiously towards the edge, wind buffeting him from every side, heart pounding. The drop is sheer and horrifying, and something about standing over it sets his blood on fire.

Ace comes up to stand at his side, wary and twitchy, and looks like he's going to hurl when he looks down.

"You work for a goddamn  _gang_ , how is this scaring you?" Sabo asks incredulously. Because deep down, he feels about as far from scared as anybody can be.

"Who said I'm scared?" Ace tries to defend, sitting down a foot from the edge and tucking his limbs up.

"Don't tell me you're afraid of heights...?"

"I'm not!"

"He is!" Luffy croons, plopping down beside him.

"Ace, you knew we were going to go to the roof of the ambassadors' building," Sabo says, "Why didn't you stop us?"

"I've never been higher than three storeys like, ever, I didn't think it would be this bad," Ace moans.

Sabo and Luffy get a laugh out of it, sure, and for a while it's pretty fun. Ace is completely terrified and such is obvious. Soon, however, he manages to calm down. The city gets darker beneath them; lights flicker off in the high district as the earliest hours of morning begin to creep in. All is still up here - it feels as though not even the ash can reach them.

"This is awesome," Ace says eventually, and shifts slowly so his legs are dangling off the edge. Sabo and Luffy mirror him.

"Not scared anymore?"

"I never was," Ace grumbles. "But, I guess."

Sabo peers over to the high district - his eyes are drawn to  _that_  building without his permission. "My old place is down there," he says quietly. "The Outlook house."

"I'll rob it with you someday," Luffy promises sleepily, head on his shoulder. His bony chin is digging into Sabo but he doesn't mind.

"Same here," Ace agrees.

Sabo's eyes wander further, to the industrial district, past the factories. Blueton has been rebuilt, the ashes shovelled away, but what it represented remains. The residence of rich humans, burnt to the ground with no culprit found. Trafalgar Law, the only man linked to the incident, never prosecuted. The building itself is proof that humans aren't invincible; that the people at the top can be toppled.

"Someday," he says, "I kinda wanna burn down Blueton. Again."

"Fuck yeah," Ace agrees, "That sounds awesome. And we'll keep Trafalgar Law out of it."

"I can get with that," Sabo grins.

"My old family live out there, I think," Luffy says suddenly. He's pointing out, past the Stacks, to the point where sky merges with land on the horizon. "Haven't seen 'em in a long time."

"Mine're probably out there somewhere too," adds Ace.

They don't come down for a while. When they do, Sabo realises how much they felt like kings up there, and he knows that Ace and Luffy felt it too.

* * *

After a month or so, Ace and Luffy have spent so much time over Sabo's that they know his trailer inside-out. Little things about it change; the window is open much more; Luffy's name is written on the inside of one of Sabo's sweatshirts in sharpie, a prank gone wrong; the macs in the cupboard are constantly being used and refilled by the brothers and Sabo can't find it in himself to complain. He likes their company. Summer is sweeping in like a hurricane and it feels fitting, because Sabo's life itself is getting warmer with them in it.

As much time as they spend at his trailer, however, Sabo has never been to Ace and Luffy's flat. Luffy tries to invite him a  _lot_ , but Ace always puts it off. At first Sabo's a little put-out by it – he's sure that it's because Ace doesn't actually trust him that much – but a few weeks after they first became friends, Ace explains it.

"Blackbeard's got constant eyes on my flat. I think he kinda knows that I hate him; he doesn't trust me," Ace explains, sprawled on Sabo's couch with his feet in the blonde's lap. "People are saying that Blackbeard was the one that carried out the shooting a few weeks back, and I don't find it hard to believe. He probably knows that you're a friend of mine – he's watching me constantly, I'm not surprised - and if you came to my apartment, both of us would be screwed. He doesn't like his minions being friends with humans."

"If he was going after me because I'm a friend of yours, surely he knows that I'm still alive?" Sabo asks. "Why hasn't he tried again? He obviously knows where I live."

"That's the thing about Blackbeard – he's an idiot, sure, but he's a paranoid idiot. He won't attack the same place twice."

"Does he think that'll protect him?"

"He doesn't like to be predictable; he doesn't like to make patterns. I've been his lackey for three years, I know the guy pretty well," Ace assures. "As long as you're here, you're pretty safe, I think. I just don't want to risk taking you to our apartment. Plus, if they caught you there, it'd be the concrete proof they needed to prove that I'm a traitor."

"A traitor to him?"

"A traitor to Faekind, I guess." Ace rests an arm over his eyes and sighs, exhausted. It's very, very late – or very early, technically – and Luffy is already asleep. The trailer is cold, but they're warm.

"If he could call you a traitor…" Sabo bites his lip. "Are you sure we should stay friends? Are you sure it's safe for you to visit me like this?"

"What?"

"I don't wanna be the reason you get kicked out or killed; I don't want to do that to you. Or Luffy. If it's dangerous for you to be here-"

"Sabo, listen to me."

The steel in Ace's voice forces Sabo to shut his mouth.

"Blackbeard controls pretty much everything about my life. I hate the guy with a passion, and I'd give my life to see him dead. But I'm valuable to him. I'm willing to do anything to keep Luffy safe and he knows that, and he wants to keep me alive because he knows what I'm capable of." Ace closes his eyes. "And you're probably the best human I've ever met. Luffy loves you - you've saved his ass and you'd do it again. You're a friend, a brother, Sabo. And I'm willing to take a risk to have you as the part of my life that he can't control."

There's something heavy in Ace's words, something world-weary in his tone. Sabo can't find it in himself to reply, and so he doesn't. Ace's breathing evens out soon and there's silence. There's a warmth in Sabo's chest that he can't shake, and Ace's words reverberate through his head pleasantly. It's nice to have brothers.


	13. We All Fall Down

_Summer_

Sabo is close to believing that life is actually getting better, that everything is going to go great for them, when fate smacks some sense back into him and shatters his life in the process.

It's a hot day - past pleasant warmth, instead bordering on sweltering heat. The layer of ash keeps heat in, and the pavements are distorted by relentless heat waves. The sun can't get through so nobody tans; somehow, it feels like being trapped in a huge, inescapable oven. Sabo can't stand the heat and his trailer is burning hot, so he spends the day at work on the conveyor, working overtime just to stay inside. By the end of the working day his hands are cramping up, but at least it's a little colder outside. It's bearable.

When he gets out, however, the air is electric. The conveyor isn't far from the grey district and both Fae and humans alike stand in clumps, murmuring uneasily. Something must have happened. Something big. Sabo can feel the anticipation in the air and a shiver races through him, something heavy dropping into the pit of his stomach. Suddenly, he feels the strong urge to run; where to, he doesn't know.

Sabo starts to walk, quick steps ringing through the streets, and anxiety grips at his heart. By the time he reaches the grey district there are more people crowded in the streets, whispering and murmuring and shouting to one another, and Sabo doesn't bother to listen in on what they're saying. By the time he reaches the city limits, he's running. Sweat drips down his back but he doesn't stop, doesn't hesitate, because there's something incredibly wrong here and his instincts are screaming that it has something to do with him.

Sprinting hard, Sabo flies through the Stacks, abandoning his usual safe route in exchange for the quickest way home. The tightness in his chest increases tenfold as he sees smoke pouring into the sky from deeper into the jungle of trailers and metal. The lingering heat creeps through his blood and his head lurches, and for a moment it feels as though he's going to throw up. Sabo's always been one to trust his instincts above all else, and now they're howling at him to  _move_.

There's a woman kneeling on the ground near Stack 67, head in her hands, screaming into her fingers as her whole body shakes. A tone of grief is ringing through the air and Sabo can taste it, can feel the foreboding resonating through him. He runs past the woman and turns a corner sharply and then he sees it - a trailer, smoking and torn in half like paper, lying on the ground. It's such a surreal sight that Sabo stumbles to a halt for a moment, dwarfed by the huge, metal frame.

Then he breaks back into a run, hurling himself through the rubble, because now he knows exactly what must have happened.

 _It can't have been mine_ , he tries to tell himself,  _please say it wasn't mine_. There's another trailer lying ahead - well, a chunk of trailer - smoking and mangled. The air smells like smoke. Somebody screams; Sabo can hear sobbing. His feet are throbbing with hard, flat pain. Every step is a bullet in his ribs - he's got a stitch and it's getting worse and worse with each second.

As he rounds the base of another Stack Sabo sees it, and this time he stops for good.

The entire top part of Stack 43 is blown up. The bottom of the destroyed structure is smoking and pieces of scaffolding litter the ground, and the metal sheets of trailers are torn and burnt and cover the muddy earth around the remaining trailers. There are five or six left now, pathetically stacked on top of one another, and people stand around the wreckage in clumps. There are sobs and moans and the world feels like it's collapsing on top of Sabo.

In an instant, two things are perfectly clear to him. Sabo's home is gone - everything he had, everything he's ever owned.

And there's no sign of Koala.

Shock hits him in the chest like a club - it brings Sabo to his knees. The Stacks have never held much of a place in his heart. But his trailer was finally beginning to feel like home; it was a refuge for Ace, a playground for Luffy. It was warm. And now it's gone. And the chances that Koala lived, the chances that she wasn't blown to bits...

"They're saying it was an electrical failure, an explosion on a grease cooker or something," somebody nearby says. Sabo wants to stand up and scream at them that there was no way that it was a failure, no way that it was some  _accident_. He wants to scream, to smash his hands into the ground, and there's an energy steaming under his skin and it hurts how much fire is growing inside him.

And all Sabo can do is kneel, unable to move, watching as the wreckage leaks smoke into the sky. His phone feels cold in his pocket and he's abruptly acutely aware of its presence. He feels like he should call Ace, get his address, find somewhere to stay where he can close his eyes and grieve and sort out the mess in his head and have a family. He knows that Ace would take him in in a heartbeat; the guy wouldn't even think about leaving Sabo on the streets. On the other hand...

_"I just don't want to risk taking you to our apartment. Plus, if they caught you there, it'd be the concrete proof they needed to prove that I'm a traitor."_

If Sabo went to Ace's, surely Blackbeard would know. Blackbeard would kill Ace, kill Luffy. And it would be Sabo's fault. The man has done enough already - he's taken Sabo's home, taken his friend. He can't take Ace and Luffy too; Sabo can't let him. Sabo _won't_  let him.

Looking away from the carnage, he tries to sort through his chaotic thoughts. Where next? Sabo has no idea what to do, no idea where to turn. The idea of going to the Outlook estate comes into his mind and he violently shoves it back. No way in hell is he running back to them, no way. He got out - he's staying that way.

Sabo tries to stand; his knees are suddenly shaky and it's hard to see where he's going as his vision swims. One leg buckles and he falls and it's abruptly hot again, too hot, painfully so. A bead of sweat on Sabo's forehead runs down his nose. It takes a few tries to stand but eventually, he manages to force himself to his feet. The air is too thin and it feels as though all oxygen has been forced from his lungs but Sabo manages to turn away from his destroyed home and stumble, one foot after the other, back towards the city limits.

The grey district is a hive of activity; news must have spread. Dozens of trailers destroyed, thousands dead. All because of Blackbeard, Sabo knows, but none of them do. As he walks through the streets, a small, selfish part of Sabo prays that Ace or Luffy will see him, will come running out of their flat and offer somewhere to stay, or at least a smile, or  _something_. Anything.

They don't come.

Sabo lets his feet carry him onwards, focusing on holding back the scream building in his throat, focusing on keeping his feet on solid ground. He tries not to think about Koala. He doesn't truly acknowledge his surroundings until he stops and looks up, and the Sabaody train station is looming over him.

It's bright inside, and very empty. Not many use the subway anymore and trains run sparsely, but the stations are still open 24/7. Sabo stands in the entryway and feels through his pockets for any spare change, stomach rumbling, coming away empty. With no idea what to do now, he walks deeper into the station and eventually, when his energy gives out, slumps back against a wall. His legs slide out in front of him and Sabo hits the floor, head slumping forwards.

 _You could always go back and find Ace and Luffy_ , that small part of his mind whispers. _They'll take you in._

Sabo does his best to ignore it. Because the better part of him, the part that he's always tried to let make his decisions for him, knows that he can't put them at risk like that. He wouldn't be able to live with himself.

Letting his head roll back, Sabo stares at the ceiling and tries to think of something, anything he can do to get out of this one.

* * *

There's something dreary settled in the walls of the den tonight. Luffy is asleep, Usopp too, and the lights are off to conserve power. There are a few candles dotted through the room - on cluttered tabletops, gathered on windowsills, perched atop doorframes - and they cast warm, dull shadows on the walls. Their flickering light ripples across Nami's skin and she settles further into the hammock, curling her wings around herself. Something about the air tonight won't allow her to sleep.

Zoro, Robin, Franky and Brook are all out. Sanji is dozing near Luffy and Usopp, head tipped back against the couch. Nami knows that he's not fully asleep (he almost never is, mistrustful as he's grown lately), but she doesn't try to talk. Instead she just looks down at the three for a while, truly taking them in. They look young in the dancing candlelight, untouched. The opposite of how they really are. Luffy seems small and unassuming, and not nearly as hyperactive and wild and joyful as he always is. Usopp is stringy and lanky, mouth lolling open in sleep, curly hair splayed everywhere. Sanji - fiercely loyal Sanji, who's stuck with them through thick and thin and everything in between - looks kind of defeated.

Nami's phone pings in her pocket. The blueish light of the screen is harsh and stark in the warm candlelight.

 **Zoro** :  _wont be around for a few days_

Nami frowns and pushes back her mistrust. Zoro is a decent guy - maybe even close to a great guy - and there has to be a reason. She forces herself to believe that that reason is favourable.

 **Nami** :  _Is it Chopper?  
_ **Zoro** :  _yea  
_ **Zoro** :  _he'll be fine, the heat just isn't great for him  
_ **Nami** :  _And he still hasn't gotten any better?  
_ **Z** **oro** :  _he's not going to ever_

Nami doesn't know how to reply to that and after a minute, an alert sweeps in that Zoro's gone offline. It's late - just past 1100, actually - so Chopper should be asleep. Nami tries to send the kid, the little brother she's never met, good vibes. It doesn't feel like it's working.

Zoro is an enigma, almost as much as Cap is. The whole gang know it. He's never once told them even what district he lives in, let alone his address. Nami knows that he's got some kind of guardian, though she doubts that that guardian is all that protective. Zoro seems to always have strict, erratic deadlines about when to get home, and he talks about Chopper as if he's the only one trying to provide of the kid. Nami doesn't doubt that he probably is.

No matter what she knows about him and no matter what happens now - with a traitor in their ranks and Nami starting to doubt what she saw that night - she knows that Zoro's a good person. A good man. And no matter what he does, he's doing it for Chopper, and that's good enough for Nami.

Luffy shifts in his sleep slightly, murmuring a name that sounds poisonous in Nami's ears, and she freezes.  _Sabo_. The guy that apparently saved Luffy; the guy that Luffy is now friends with. The blonde noble that protested for Fae rights and broke away from his own family and lives on the Stacks, and the man who was involved in the Blueton fire two years ago.

The guy Nami and Zoro have been watching for years.

Nami knows that there's absolutely no way to stop Luffy from being friends with the guy. Stopping Luffy from doing anything that he wants to do is, in essence, impossible. But she knows about Ace's hate of humans and has to wonder how Luffy is getting away with being friends with one of them, and whether Cap is in danger because of it. Because without a doubt, Ace is a dangerous boy. A dangerous man.

Suddenly, there's a muffled buzzing and Luffy snaps awake, slipping off the couch and landing right on Sanji. The chef and Usopp jolt awake too, gasping and cursing, but Luffy doesn't pay any attention to them; he's already standing, phone at his ear, saying, "Hello?"

Nami sits up and listens intently - even Sanji and Usopp stop bickering to look up at Cap, listening in on his conversation. Luffy looks worried, and his phone casts an icy blue sheen on his skin.

"What? Ace, what-"

Panic - pure and unadulterated. Nami doesn't think she's ever heard it in his voice. Luffy listens and 'hm's and nods for a minute, biting his lip. The silence is tense. One of the candles on the windowsill splutters out and dies.

"Okay. Kay, I'll be right there- yeah, I know, I know. Keep looking."

Another long silence. Luffy looks very, very worried now and it rubs off on the rest of the room. The dreariness settled in the walls is replaced with panic, low and choking.

"Okay. Yeah, see you in a bit."

The dial tone rings, tinny but audible, and Luffy snaps his phone shut and runs for the window. Nami waits for him to explain - or at least say goodbye to them, or something - but for the first time in her memory, Luffy doesn't say a word to them as he opens the window and clambers out, and disappears into the night. It's as if he doesn't even realise that they're there.

Usopp and Sanji exchange looks and Nami tells them, "Don't follow him. Look, it's his business - but we'll call him in the morning."

"Are you sure?" Usopp asks, wiry frame vibrating with energy.

"That was Ace calling. He doesn't exactly love us right now - and plus, you know he'll take care of Luffy," Nami says. She doesn't mention that even she doesn't quite believe that, not really.

Usopp and Sanji, though obviously worried, slowly settle back down - Nami doesn't lie back until she's sure that they aren't going to chase after Cap. Every part of her wants to. But she knows that they can't - there are some things that even their tightly-knit group don't share with one another. If Luffy didn't even bother to say goodbye, this must be important and it's none of their business. Or, at least, that's what Nami tries to tell herself.

Mind swirling with worries, Nami slowly drifts off to sleep in the candlelight. Her dreams are tinged blue.

* * *

The clock strikes twelve, and Sabo wants to throw up.

He can hear them streaming off the train - there's a group of people traipsing towards him, maybe five or six of them. Their boisterous voices echo through the station and Sabo ducks his head, hiding behind his hair as he tries desperately to convince himself that it isn't  _his voice_  that he's hearing. Not after all these years, surely.

A handful of tense, choked seconds pass. The voices get louder and the one Sabo recognises crows, "And of course, they ironed the harpy's ears. Both of them, right there - I managed to...persuade them." Loud, echoing laughter - and Sabo's blood boils. "I'm sure the winged rat learnt not to try-"

Stelly's voice cuts off suddenly, and all of Sabo goes rigid at once. He can feel eyes on him and turns his head to the side, curling his legs up into himself, fingers tucking into fists. He prays that his hair is hiding his face, that the distinctive burn scar isn't visible, but-

"Why, I don't believe my own eyes!" Stelly's voice silences those of his little friends. His mocking tone is too loud in Sabo's ears and he knows that he's been recognised. When he looks up, Stelly is right above him. His watery blue eyes are squinted and mean-looking, and Sabo's gut curls. "It's Sabo!"

"Hello, Stelly," Sabo tries to say calmly. His voice comes out croaky and tired.

And now the rest of Stelly's noble friends seem to catch on; there's a ripple of laughter, and Sabo has to fight not to look away from the sneers above him. They look down at him like he's human trash and right now, without even the strength to stand up, Sabo feels like it.

Stelly taps his booted foot. "You're enjoying your freedom, I see," he snickers. More laughter.

"Anything's better than having to watch you prance around, Outlook," Sabo bites back. "At least I had the guts to leave-"

"You mean the idiocy?"

The laughter is getting on Sabo's last nerve - it makes his skin crawl.

"No, I mean the  _human decency_ , you-"

"And now look at you!" Stelly interrupts carelessly. "Common street trash. Nothing like the noble you were made to be. A traitor to humankind."

"Stelly, I don't care how we're made. And I never will. So you can take your supremacy complex and shove it up your-"

Stelly stomps down hard on Sabo's outstretched hand.

First there's a crunch - the coldness of the marble floor as his hand presses against it. Then the pain hits, intense and terrible, and Sabo grits his teeth so hard that they creak against one another. Something in his hand shatters and he holds back a howl, limbs jerking. Stelly's friends eat it up, sniggering and egging on Stelly's inflated ego, and it feels like an eternity before Stelly lifts his foot. There's blood on the toe of his boot. Sabo doesn't want to look down, can't bear to see the damage.

Stelly spits on the ground near Sabo's feet and the blonde's vision blurs a little. His head spins with pain, a small noise escaping from his throat. He squeezes his eyes shut and tries desperately to focus on his breathing, to ignore the stabbing agony in his hand. When he finally opens them again, Stelly and his little gang are gone, and the fire in Sabo's belly is out.

The world fades in and out. Nobody else stops to acknowledge him.

* * *

"But where else would he be?!" Luffy asks in frustration. "We checked the pub, the Stacks, the flat-"

Ace shakes his head, pacing back and forth. The street is dark dark - it's just past midnight, and Stack 43 is gone. They've been searching for almost an hour, with no idea of where Sabo would be. They've called him, only to find that his phone goes straight to voicemail. They've thought of every possible place he could be-

And Ace's hope is fading. How likely is it that Sabo really wasn't in the apartment when it happened? How likely is it that he's even-?

Two hands clap down on either side of Ace's face, and Luffy's brown eyes are suddenly boring into his own. "Stop thinking that," Luffy commands.

"Thinking what?" Ace tries.

"That he didn't make it. Cause he did," Luffy says fiercely, "I know he made it. I can feel it. He's got to have made it."

"Luffy-"

"No! Stop! We can't just loose hope!"

"The explosion was obviously Blackbeard, and he wouldn't have tried if Sabo wasn't home-"

"Stop!" Luffy's voice grows desperate. "Please stop!"

Ace looks away. "Look - we'll check Sabaody. I know he works the conveyor there. But Lu, we-"

"Don't call me that." Luffy sounds choked. "Please don't."

"Luffy," Ace corrects. "Stay calm. We'll check the conveyor in Sabaody, but I can't guarantee..."

"Let's go," Luffy decides, setting his jaw. His eyes are wet. "Let's just go, please, let's go."

"Okay." Ace wraps an arm around Luffy's shoulder and tries not to let grief hit him yet. "Okay, let's go."

They start off walking to Sabaody, but by the time they're close to the conveyor the pair are both running. Empty shops flash by, dark and hollow under the ashy sky, crammed up against one another like rotten teeth. The train station pours fluorescent light out into the street and Ace runs right past it, wings tucked in tightly-

But Luffy suddenly stops.

"Luffy? What is it?" Ace slows to a stop, in the darkness past the large doors to the station.

"Look." Luffy points through the glass. His face is slack with shock, eyes incredulous. "Ace. Ace, look."

Ace takes a step into the light and the spell breaks; before he can react Luffy is flying through the double doors, feet hammering on the ground, scarlet wing flailing. Ace pushes through the doors right after him, heart pounding, only to stop in his tracks.

Luffy collapses to his knees beside Sabo. The blonde is staring at nothing, skin pale. His hand is resting at his side, bloodied, skin jagged. Two of his fingers are bent the wrong way. He looks  _dead_.

But even as Ace watches, Sabo's eyes flit upwards and meet Luffy's, and his face breaks. And then Ace runs - then he skids to a stop on his knees at Sabo's side, relief and concern thundering through his veins all at once.

"Holy shit, Sabo,  _Sabo_!"

"What happened to you?! What happened to your hand?!"

Sabo coughs a little, and it sounds weak and wet but certifiably alive. "Hi," he croaks.

"'Hi'? We worry our asses off and you say-"

"Sabo..." With a sniff, Luffy swipes at his eyes and chokes out a small laugh. "Sabo. Sabo! Sabo, Sabo, Sabo!"

"That's me," the blonde whispers with a shaky grin.

Ace sits back on his haunches and scrubs at his face with his hands, feeling his fear ebb away. "You scared us. You scared us so much."

"Aw, you do care," Sabo's voice says. It's slightly muffled and when Ace opens his eyes again, he laughs at the sight in front of him; Sabo, looking helpless but grinning all the same, is being smothered into a forceful hug by Luffy.

He looks down and he and Ace seem to both realise it at the same time. Luffy is gripping him a little too tightly - there's a little too much force in his frame.

"I'm okay, Lu," Sabo murmurs. His uninjured arm comes up to hug back. He shoots Ace a look, and they grin at one another under the fluorescent lights.

"You're coming back with us-"

The smile melts off Sabo's face in a split second. "Ace, I thought you said-"

"Fuck Blackbeard. Let him do what he wants." Ace's fiery wings set his eyes alight. "You're one of us."

"Yeah," Luffy says into his shoulder.

Sabo looks like he's about to protest. There's a small spatter of blood on his cheek, probably from his hand, but no tears in his eyes. Ace doesn't think he's ever seen him cry before, even through all the shit they've seen in the last few months.

"Okay," Sabo says quietly. "Okay, let's go home."


	14. Home

Sabo wakes slowly. He's warm, right down to his bones, and there's something heavy resting on his chest. He doesn't open his eyes for a while. There's a dull pain in his right hand and it appears to him slowly, growing as consciousness comes. He struggles for a while to recall where he is, how he got there. Why he feels so safe.

It all comes back in a rush. Stack 43, blown up. Sitting in the train station. Stelly's mean eyes as he sneered down at him. Pain in his hand, blood on the tiles. Ace and Luffy's relieved voices.  _Home_.

Sabo opens his eyes.

The ceiling above is a little grimy, cream stained with limescale, but it's well-lit enough that Sabo knows it must be daytime. The warm something on his chest shifts a little and he looks down into a head of scruffy black hair - Luffy is on top of him, mouth wide open as he snores obnoxiously. Sabo tries to move, pushing himself into a sitting position, but Luffy is a leech; the arms around his waist only tighten twofold.

At a loss as to what to do, Sabo glances around, taking in the room he's in. It's a relatively small living room - larger than the main room in his trailer but smaller than the norm. The walls are grimy, but not overly so. There's something about the room that feels cluttered and homely and warm. It takes Sabo a moment to find Ace - the Fae is lying back against the couch Sabo and Luffy are on, head tilted back, fast asleep. Sabo tries to move again, and this time, Luffy wakes up.

He blinks for a moment, bleary-eyed. Then his eyes land on Sabo's face and consciousness seems to come to him in an instant; the grin that spreads across his face is blinding.

"Sabo!" he yelps, so loudly that Ace jerks awake.

"Hey, Luffy," Sabo replies, "Can you- uh- can you let go, please? I can't breathe."

"Ah, sorry!" Luffy beams, even as he doesn't look sorry in the slightest.

"Sabo?" Ace yawns, scrubbing at his eyes with his hands. "Mornin', ba-"

He cuts himself off, suddenly turning bright red. Luffy snickers. 

Confused, Sabo asks, "What?"

"Nothing! It's nothing." Ace runs a hand through his hair, cheeks still dark. "Shut it, Luffy."

Sabo decides, reluctantly, to drop it. "Nice flat."

Ace and Luffy both seem to remember what happened at once; and then Luffy looks at his hand and Ace looks at his face and both of them look worried.

"How's your hand?"

"What happened to you yesterday?"

"It's a really long story," Sabo says tiredly, "But could we eat something? I'm starving."

"Deal," Ace says.

They sit around the tiny kitchen table and Sabo marvels at the apartment - it's clean, relatively well-insulated and more spacey than anything he's lived in before. When he finds out that Ace and Luffy have a working shower, he almost cries. The trio share a mac and it takes a while but soon the conversation rolls around.

"What happened last night?" Sabo asks. "The last thing I remember is lying in the station."

"You passed out," Luffy explains. "So Ace carried you back here - and I helped! - and he set your hand. And then we went to sleep."

Sabo looks down at his hand, taking it in again - it's covered in bandages and aches, but it's in the normal shape of a hand. No fingers broken. Bandages are costly, and guilt curls in his chest but he doesn't mention it.

"Anyway - you still haven't told us what happened to you," Ace says.

"I worked late at the conveyor to get out of the heat," Sabo explains. "And by the time I got home... home was gone." He coughs. "I wasn't in a good way. I remembered what you'd told me about not coming to your apartment, Ace, so I didn't come to you. I just wandered around until I reached Sabaody station, and I sat around there for a while."

"And your hand?"

Sabo hesitates. Ace looks frustrated.

"Sabo, two of your fingers were broken and your metacarpus was shattered. That's a big deal. I don't know if you're ever gonna be able to write properly again - at least tell us what happened."

"Okay, okay. When... when I was still with the Outlooks, they had another son. A few years younger than me - Stelly, his name was. And he and his friends got off a train, they were in the station, and he saw me... We had a bit of an argument. I got angry and told him exactly where to shove his opinions and he got angry too, and he-"

"Broke your hand?" Ace finishes.

"Yeah," whispers Sabo.

"Asshole," Luffy says angrily, glaring at the table. "We've totally gotta rob Outlook's place soon. I wanna hit him."

"Me too," Sabo laughs slightly. Then he looks at Ace, who still looks unsure. "Ace?"

"You said he was their other son," Ace clarifies, "So he was your brother?"

"What? No. No way!" Sabo rushes to correct himself. "I'd never call him a relative of mine. Never."

"Yeah, blood doesn't matter," Luffy agrees solemnly, chin on the table.

Ace nods, cracking a smile, and the atmosphere loosens. They chat for a while more about nothing in particular, and the kitchen gets lighter as the morning wanes on. Sabo finds himself picking at the bandages on his hand, frustrated with the lack of movement he can manage with it.

"I tried to set it the best I could," Ace tells him, "But I'm no expert. Try to leave it bandaged up, we'll have to deal with it when we've got an actual doctor."

"One of my friends knows a lot about stuff like that," interrupts Luffy. "Robin. I'll take you to meet her!"

Ace looks sour - it's obvious that he's not the best of friends with Luffy's gang - but he nods.

"Okay," Sabo says at some point. "So, what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I really appreciate you taking me in. And your apartment is amazing - and I'm really happy to be here. But... I remember what you said about Blackbeard. I know what he'll do to you if he finds out that I'm here. Shouldn't I just...?"

"Nope, no way, no, stop talking," Ace says. "No way in hell are we just gonna boot you out."

"If you don't, he'll-"

"I've said it before; he can't control everything about my life. I won't let him. You're staying with us, we'll just have to be careful about it - you can sneak out of the window around the back to get out and go to work when you need to. As long as you keep your head low and don't interact with us too much in public, we're good. And Luffy – you're not allowed to tell your friends that he's here. Period."

"I'm just... I don't want you two to get hurt. I've seen what Blackbeard can do; my home is gone because of him."

Ace's head drops down and it just confirms what Sabo had already known. "You guessed that it was him, then?"

"Yeah. He's insane - I'm not even a huge problem for him. But hundreds of people are dead now."

"I went out earlier," Luffy says, "Before you woke up." He shivers. "It's  _horrible_. There are more people in the streets, looking for places to stay, and apparently the police are coming. Everybody's shaken up. And they all know that Blackbeard did it, so people think it's gonna happen again - people from the Stacks are everywhere."

"The police?" Ace frowns. "Better be careful."

"Yeah, I second that." Sabo leans back, going to crack his knuckles out of habit before wincing and stopping himself. "Have you got a job today?"

"Nah - we're pretty well stocked. And Blackbeard isn't expecting me. You got a shift?"

"No, not until tomorrow," Sabo replies.

"I've gotta introduce you to my friends!" Luffy says gleefully, "You'll love them. And you can meet Sanji!"

"Yeah, yeah, but first, let the guy see the shower," Ace snickers. "Since you were so excited."

Sabo sticks his tongue out. "Your apartment is awesome. Sue me."

"Awesome?" Ace snorts. "We live in the goddamn grey district."

"It's better than the Stacks." Sabo laughs. "And it's definitely better than the high district."

He doesn't say it - though he's sure that Ace and Luffy understand - but this place is the first place that's actually felt like home to him. Ever.

When 0900 rolls around, Luffy jumps up and says, "Crap. School. I gotta go - I skipped yesterday." He dances out of the way of Ace's swipe, and runs into the sitting room to grab a raggedy school bag. "See you Sabo! Have a good day!"

"You too, Lu," Sabo grins, as Ace grumbles. "Work hard!"

Luffy mumbles something noncommittal and then the door slams, and Sabo snickers at the miserable look on Ace's face. "He's a little shit," Ace grouches.

Sabo just laughs, and agrees, and enjoys the warmth of this place.

* * *

The sky outside the window is bright, pastel blue. It's a little aggravating on the eyes, too intense, so Marco looks away.

"I'm still waiting for an answer," Thatch grouches from the armchair across the room.

"You're gonna be waiting for a while," Marco quips.

"Marco!" Thatch whines. "Look, just tell me - what happened in the city? You've been acting so weird since you got back..."

"You're imagining it," Marco says, without looking up from his book.

"No, Marco, I'm not." Thatch sounds more serious now. "Look, please, I'm not going to let you rest until you tell me. So just get it over with, whatever it is."

Marco hesitates. Finally, he sighs and says, "I heard a name I haven't heard in a while."

Thatch straightens up. "What?"

"The bartender I always talk to - he was texting somebody and I saw their contact name. 'Ace'."

Thatch's mouth falls open. The atmosphere in the room is suddenly frigid. 'Ace' is a buzz-word - a taboo - in Wakeshead. And at its mention, Thatch abruptly clams up; his whole frame tightens in his seat.

"And he got defensive when I asked about Ace's last name. He said 'his Ace hates humans'. And I left."

"Holy crap... holy crap!" Thatch tries to stand but it's more like a tumble, out of his seat and to his feet. "Have you told Oyaji?"

"I don't want to get his hopes up. I don't want to get  _my_  hopes up," Marco admits. "It was probably nothing. There are probably thousands of people called Ace in the world, dozens in the city. It didn't mean anything."

"And you're just gonna let it go?" Thatch looks like somebody kicked his puppy.

"Yes, Thatch, that's exactly what I'm going to do."

"But it could be him! Our Ace! Whitebeard Ace! Don't you at least want to try?!"

"I want to," Marco says. "But if he's alive in the city, why hasn't he come back to us? Why does he hate humans?" He sighs. "Even if Ace is alive... he might hate us."

"But why would he?!"

"We never found him? Or how about how we cooped him up in the middle of the wilds for years, when he obviously wanted more?" Marco asks in a deadpan voice.

Thatch stares. "You've been thinking about this a lot..."

"Maybe I have. But that doesn't matter. The point is - we don't even know it is Ace and if it is, he doesn't want to see us. So let it go," Marco says forcefully. "I don't even know why I told you."

With a deep sigh, he leaves the room, and Thatch is left alone.

* * *

By the time Luffy gets in from school, Sabo has explored every inch of the apartment and he and Ace are lounging on the couch, Ace's feet in the blonde's lap. Sabo is unwrapping his bandages to give the torn skin some air. There's a harsh line of swelling across his palm, and two of his fingers are slightly bent and bruised. The tear in the skin is long but superficial, and already beginning to heal. Luffy winces when he sees the wound, jaw tightening with anger or anguish; Sabo can't tell.

"How was school?" Ace asks. "You'd better have gone..."

"I did!" Luffy defends, flopping down on top of his brother's stomach as aggressively as he can. "We got a talk from one of the uptown people. A businessman dude. Dofla-something."

"Doflamingo?" Sabo asks. "I've heard of that guy. Cora new him, though I don't know how."

"Yeah, him." Luffy scowls. "Prick. He gave us the talk about crime rates and statistics and biology and..."

"And why the Fae are monsters," finishes Sabo with a sigh. "Lu, you know it's all bullshit."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. It just sucks. And a bunch of people in my class were joking about it and I... may have gotten a little angry."

Ace sits up slightly. "Don't tell me you punched one of them. Luffy,  _no_."

"I won't tell ya then," Luffy mutters.

"Luffy!"

"You would have done the same!"

"You need to stay in that school, don't you get that?! They're already looking for an excuse to expel you-"

Sabo sits back and watches the brothers bicker, head whirling. After a moment, he cuts in, "I'm proud of you."

Luffy's face breaks into a wide grin while Ace lets out a small, frustrated scream through gritted teeth. "What the hell, Sabo?!"

"It's what I would have done," Sabo defends. "Better to be active than to be passive."

"He could get expelled-"

"Why do you care so much?"

Ace's mouth closes with a small snap. There's a long silence and Luffy looks between the pair like he's watching a tennis match. Then, he says quietly, "Ace never went to school."

"And I want Luffy to do what I couldn't," Ace murmurs. He suddenly stands, and Luffy falls to the floor with a yelp. "I'm gonna go." He fixes Sabo with an icy glare, though it's not as fierce as it could have been. "Don't encourage him. I'm just trying to be a good guardian."

When he's gone, however, Luffy still looks put out so Sabo says in a low voice, "I'm still proud of you."

* * *

By the time Ace gets in, it's late enough that Luffy is asleep and Sabo's eyes are dry and stinging. It's dark outside, the air stuffy, and he stumbles in like a zombie. It looks like he's going to collapse in the hallway and he and Sabo stare at each other for a while, standing under the dull fluorescent lights.

"You stayed up?" Ace asks.

The spell breaks and Sabo nods, resisting the urge to yawn. "I live here now, it's the least I can do."

"Did Luffy stick around?"

"Yeah - he's asleep in his room." Sabo nods to the kitchen. "We've got a mac spare. You gotta eat something."

"It's not-"

"Nope, I'm not taking no for an answer. Come on."

They end up sharing, mostly because both of them are too tired to argue about it much. Luffy snores in the other room and Sabo picks at the hem of his bandages, and watches the bruise on Ace's throat contort as he eats.

"Sorry about earlier," Ace says at some point.

"Why should you be sorry? I was the one who said something stupid."

Ace shrugs. "I was a dick about it. So I'm sorry. Luffy's a good kid, I know he is, I just want him to have a good future."

Sabo thinks for a moment. "What do you think a good future is?"

"I dunno." Ace shrugs. "House in the Sabaody district. A clean record. A decent job. Safety."

"And... do you think that's really what Luffy wants?"

"I-" Ace swallows. "Maybe not. But it's what he needs. I just want him to be safe."

"Well... what do you think is most important?" Sabo pops a piece of mac into his mouth and crunches down on it. "Him being safe, or him being happy?"

Ace's jaw tightens and he looks away, something new in his eyes. "I..."

"I get what you want for him, I know you just want him to have a good life." Sabo takes a deep breath. "But Luffy would rather die than live a vanilla life with two and a half children and a picket fence. You know he would."

"I guess... maybe you're right." Ace's eyes are hard. "But at least he would be alive."

"Look, I'm not gonna pretend to know better. You're his guardian. But just... think about it, okay?"

"Okay. Okay, sure." Ace pushes his chair back and stands. "Should we sleep?"

"Yeah, yeah, definitely," Sabo laughs. "Let's go to bed."

* * *

Time goes on.

The summer is long and hot, and every day Sabo wakes up to the sound and smell of the city. There are occasional gunshots, of course there are. And things are still dangerous, of course they are. But the grey district is so much less torturous than the Stacks. Sabo doesn't wake up every day dreading having to climb down, dodging bullets, freezing cold or frying in a metal cage. Most of the time he wakes up underneath a sleepy, clingy, overeager fifteen-year old, warm and unafraid.

The city is changing, though; everybody can feel it. It happens every year. The Hunt is coming around, and people are getting scared. Luffy apparently has a friend who's an I, who has now gone into hiding; Sabo wonders whether Bepo is scared. He probably is. He was when Sabo knew him. The Hunt has always been something to dread - for the Fae, for I's, for hybrids. Even for Sabo. Even Marco seems more and more unsettled when they see one another, though he never mentions Ace again and Sabo doesn't mention.

August sweeps in like a sandstorm and with it comes the wind, whipping the ash up around the city and staining everything with a choking brown stain. Sabo settles into life with the brothers, gets to know their little tics, the little mechanics that rule the apartment. As the nights get longer again, summer slowly fading into a stormy autumn, Sabo spends night after night tutoring Luffy to get him through the term. Maths, lit, history. The fundamentals. It's frustrating - Luffy doesn't process anything and very obviously isn't keen on learning - but they get through it, slowly.

 _Very_  slowly.

"So I's... I's are people with wings..."

Sabo takes a deep breath and exhales it slowly. "No, Luffy, those are Fae. You're a Fae. Please say you know what Fae are."

"Yeah! I do!" Luffy defends. "This is just confusing!"

"Okay, let's go through it again." Sabo decides to change up his tactics. "What is Ace?"

"A goof. You called him one last night!"

"Luffy, no! Gah! You're doing this on purpose now, aren't you?"

"Maybe..."

"Okay." Sabo toys with the end of the splint on his hand. "Okay. Let's try again. What is Ace?"

"He's a Fae."

"That's right. And what does Ace have?"

"Wings, right!"

"So that means..."

"The Fae have wings. I know that, I do!" Luffy huffs out a frustrated breath. "Look, it only gets hard when there's a table and I'm getting asked questions and it doesn't make any sense! It works with you 'cause you actually seem to care. But the teachers..."

"They don't?"

Luffy shudders. "Most of 'em don't like me very much. And they ask stuff I can't answer and then say that I'm being disruptive when I say I don't get it."

"Do they treat anybody else like that?" Sabo asks, this time gently. He remembers getting similar treatment from his own teachers, and it sucks - it really, really sucks.

"The other Fae. There are only, like, two or three more of us. I don't really know them," Luffy says. "But we're pretty used to it. It's only really bad when the other kids are around, the human ones."

"Okay, let's try something new." Sabo can see Luffy's mood dropping and wants to move away from the topic before it gets worse. "If you don't like questions, then... let's try fill in the blanks. When the infertility happened, it took a while but eventually, scientists found a...?"

It takes him a moment to catch on but then Luffy grins. "A cure!"

"Yeah! And the cure worked, but some women were still born infertile. These were known as...?"

"I's?"

"Yep." Sabo tries not to let his enthusiastic tone waver. "Because they were still a part of the huge problem that was the infertility, the government-"

"They tried to get rid of them." And suddenly Luffy seems to have caught on; abruptly, he's no longer eager and grinning. "Just 'cause they were different."

They sit in silence for a while; Sabo has no idea what to say. Because what can you say to somebody like Luffy, in a situation like this? He's constantly hopeful - always happy. He's not stewing with anger and fire like Sabo, not world-weary and lost like Ace. Sabo had always thought that it was impossible to find somebody with hope in a world like this but then Luffy came along, and he realised that yes; people with hope still exist. But there's no sign of that hope in his face new.

"I wanna change this city someday," Luffy says quietly. "I wanna change everything. I want to change the world."

"Me too," Sabo replies. "Me too."

"And I wanna be free-" He turns desperate eyes to Sabo, "I really, really want to be free. More than anything. More than I ever have."

"Me too," Sabo whispers.

Ace is in the room and it's obvious that he can hear them, but he doesn't say anything; but Sabo knows that he agrees.

"Are we gonna change things?"

"We'll try." Sabo sets his jaw and smiles, forcing the expression as he's so used to doing. "I swear we'll try."


	15. Far From Home

_Autumn._

Zoro has reached the  _end of his tether_.

"It's fine!" Chopper says - or tries to say, but he breaks off into a harsh cough half way through. "I'm okay - I'm okay."

"It's not - Chopper, this  _isn't_  okay!" growls Zoro. "We're leaving. We have to! It's been too much, too long-"

"We can't afford to leave... Zoro, what about the medicine?!"

Zoro storms backwards and forwards, pacing the tiny room like a hurricane, like a caged tiger. "I'm sorry, tell me what happened again?" Then he continues, before Chopper can even open his mouth, "He replaced your med jabs with water! Dirty water! Every single one of them! Chopper, that's  _months_  of work - it's not worth it any more. We can find another place to get meds; we have to go!"

"It's only one time! It's not going to kill me-"

"What if it does? What would I do then?!" Zoro's voice cracks slightly but he doesn't stop pacing, doesn't halt in his antsy rage. "I'm not taking that risk. This time it's dirty water - what if it's drugs next? What if it's  _poison_?!"

Chopper's head falls and he gives in. "Okay," he whispers.

And then Zoro is moving quicker - he races through the room and shoves everything he can get his hands on into the one bag they own, and he can feel Chopper's eyes on his back but he doesn't stop. It's dark outside, a warmish September night, and a plan starts to form in his mind, slowly but surely.

"Where are we going to get medication?" Chopper asks quietly. He sniffs.

Zoro feels some part of his steel resolve crack. He moves around the bed, dropping his rucksack on the covers and taking a seat on the mattress. "Look," he tells Chopper, heart beating fast, "I'm sorry about all of this. But I promise we'll find a way. I promise."

Chopper nods. It doesn't quite look sure, but he nods all the same.

* * *

Sabo and Ace talk a lot. The conversations are always pretty late - usually in the earliest hours of morning, when Luffy is asleep, because both of them are hopeless insomniacs. Depending on how tired they are, the conversations vary in tone. Sometimes they talk about life. Sometimes they talk about the world. Sometimes, Sabo teases Ace about being afraid of heights even after being in his trailer, and Ace defends that he didn't notice how high they were because he was too distracted by Sabo's stupid face. Sometimes they just play cards, or noughts and crosses, or just poke one another until one or both passes out from tiredness. It's a nice routine, and it builds a mutual understanding between the pair.

Tonight, for example, they're both too tired for much conversation. Sabo's shift finished two hours ago, at midnight, and Ace only got in from his job a while ago and they're both sore and sleepy. Sabo relishes the feeling of the cool table against his forehead and reaches out to poke Ace's forehead. "You're it."

Ace groans. "I spy with my little eye, something beginning with 'f'."

Sabo yawns. "Fun games?"

"No - 'fuck off'."

"Close enough."

A long stretch of silence. It's raining outside. After a while, Ace glances up and pokes Sabo's uninjured hand. "You're it," he says, smothering a yawn.

"Uh... I spy with my little eye, something beginning with-"

The front door crashes open. Ace jerks up and Sabo copies the action, and there are heavy footsteps in the corridor for a moment, and then Luffy bursts into the room. There's panic all over his face and he's soaked to the skin, panting hard. "Ace! I need your help!"

Ace is up out of his seat and across the room in a second. His hands land on his brother's shoulders and stay there. "Why? What's happened?"

"Zoro arrived at our den - his younger brother is with him, and he's- there's a lot of blood and we don't know what to  _do_ , and they said they need a doctor so I just ran, please say you know somebody-"

Ace is already on the phone, scrolling through his contacts, and Sabo takes his place in front of Luffy. The kid looks shaken up, hair sticking up everywhere, and he's shivering as Sabo pulls him into a swift hug. "You did the right thing," Sabo says. "You said there was a lot of blood-?"

Luffy sniffs and pulls away, setting his jaw into a hard line. "He was coughing it up. And he's just a little kid - like,  _twelve_  - and none of us could stop it. We'd never met him before."

"What's his name?"

"Chopper." Luffy's adrenaline seems to seep away and he flops into a chair, and Sabo lets himself feel concerned for a moment before-

"Law?"

Sabo's blood freezes in his veins.

"Yeah, I…" Ace clears his throat and says into the phone, "We've got a sick kid on our hands. Can you come to my apartment? We'll take you to the kid." A pause for a second more. "Okay. See you soon."

Ace clicks his phone off and turns around, faces Sabo and freezes, as if only remembering now what that name means to him. Luffy looks between them, and there's silence for a second.

"I can tell him to stop, I'm-"

"Ace-"

"I mean, I know what happened and-"

"Ace-!"

"And if you don't-"

"ACE!"

Ace's mouth shuts and he looks at Sabo like he's a timebomb, waiting to blow. Sabo takes a deep breath, then another.

"Look. I don't know what's going to happen when I see Law, but… if some kid stays alive, then it's worth it. I can tolerate him for as long as it takes. So stop worrying."

Ace looks dubious but he nods, slowly but surely. "Okay. Okay. He'll be here in twenty minutes."

Luffy stands up, pushing his chair back. "I'll go back to the den," he says quickly. "It's Block 70, Ace - second floor, so use the rope ladders from Block 67, okay?"

"Okay - get back to your friends," Sabo replies. "Tell them we'll be there soon."

The door slams behind Luffy and the house is abruptly silent for a moment. Then Ace sits back down. Sabo copies him, and they sit in silence, and they wait.

Sabo has no idea what he's going to say.

* * *

"I'm done!"

Lola bites her lip, watching the man stride towards the door. It's dark outside - the ash is thick, out here in the wilds - and a heaviness feels as though it's hanging over the mansion.

"Mama won't be happy," Lola warns. She still doesn't move to stop him. The twenty-eight year old's footsteps ring on the marble floor.

"Screw her. Screw all of this!"

Pudding is watching from across the room, glowering, and doesn't speak. Neither her nor her sister have ever seen Shanks so angry. So uncontrolled. Or, at least, they haven't for a very long time.

"It's been  _seven years_!" Shanks yells. He's outlined in the doorway, shrouded in ashes as if he's about to combust. "Luffy must be fourteen now, maybe even fifteen!"

"And probably dead," Pudding smirks.

" _Shut up_!"

There's a little blood seeping through the bandages on Shanks' eye. He scowls at the, forehead creasing, and electricity crackles through the air.

"I'm finished. With all of this - with your goddamn cult mindset, with being afraid, with watching you tear my family apart!"

"Then  _leave_."

"I will!"

With his words hanging in the air Shanks turns, jaw set, and strides out of the door and into the night. The last thing he sees is Lola's worried face, Pudding's taunting grin. Then the doors slam and he's running, down the long gravel path and away from Whole Cake Manor, away from the only home he's ever known. His backpack is heavy between his wings but he doesn't stop, doesn't falter, doesn't look back.

"I'm going to find my godson," the twenty-eight year old whispers. "And you too, Dragon."

* * *

When Law walks in, he doesn't seem to notice him at first. He looks at Ace and takes a step forwards, as if to greet him - but then Sabo clears his throat and Law turns to look at him. For a moment, nothing changes. Sabo barely breathes. He's suddenly accurately aware of his own body, of how it's changed. His hair is longer, his clothes are shabbier, he's skinnier and scruffier and so much more broken than before. His burn scars tingle with static.

But even despite everything, he had no doubt that Law recognises him. The man takes a shaky step back, than another, striking eyes wide and confused. He's taller, lankier, with a face more mature than when Sabo last laid eyes on it. There's a scar on the back of his hand that wasn't there before. He looks haggard and tired. There's a heart tattooed onto his wrist, spiky and black and intimidating.

 _Corazon_.

The rage hits Sabo in a rush, like a tide, like a surge of fire rushing from is stomach into his throat. His chair hits the floor and then Ace's arms are curling around his stomach, holding his arms back, restraining him even as all Sabo wants to do is tear out Law's eyes. He struggles madly, desperately, a foreign kind of rage tearing through him. But Ace is strong, very strong, and he holds him back until the fight bleeds out of him.

Sabo slumps. Ahead of him, Law looks disturbed and wary, close to running away. Ace's hold loosens but he stays close, Sabo's arm wrapped awkwardly around his neck. Sabo knows that if Ace was to step away, he would fall to the ground.

"Do you two need to talk?" Ace asks slowly, into the silence.

"No," Sabo croaks, in a voice that sounds broken. Then, louder, "No. I've got nothing to say. Let's just save that kid and be done with all of this, that's all that matters."

Law nods and turns away, almost dismissively. Something in Sabo's blood boils, begging to be released. He ignores it. Let the fire burn - let it rage out of control. He's used to burning anyway.

Ace shoots him worried looks all the way out of the apartment block and down the stairs. Sabo doesn't respond to them, doesn't even look up. There's a void growing in his throat and he wants to scream but at the same time wants to do nothing, to stop functioning. When the rage falls away, he's left completely empty.

Sabo suddenly wants to defend himself. Because he knows that deep down, Law isn't a bad person. Not really. He's a good person, a brave person, who grew up into a world where it's kill or be killed. He was born into a life unlike Sabo's or even Ace's, where you have nobody and what you do have, you have to fight tooth-and-nail for. He was born into a system savage enough to take everything from him over and over and he's afraid to lose it again. Sabo knows that.

Law is a good person. He has to be. He's just done very, very bad things.

And Sabo doesn't really know whether he has the right to hate him for it. All he does know is that the anger inside of him, the uncontrollable tide that consumed him when Law walked in, is something that is impossible to ignore. Something impulsive. Something animal.

Sabo has always advocated for peace, but now he feels like a hypocrite. Because the hatred in his chest feels strong enough to decimate everything and anything else. Strong enough to burn the world to the ground.

* * *

The den, as Luffy calls it, is small and homely and well lived-in. Posters plaster the walls in bright colours - knickknacks are cluttered over every flat surface. There's a small boy curled up on a couch across the room, surrounded by a huddle of scruffy-looking, worried teens. Ace winces as he sees the whorls and distortions on the kid's skin. He knows exactly what it means.

"Radiation poisoning?" Law asks in a no-nonsense tone, striding through the room like he's been doing this all his life.

"Yes," answers Zoro, sounding panicked. "He hasn't had his meds for twenty-four hours-"

"Standard cell immunisation jabs?" Law cuts in. "I have a supply on me."

Zoro puts his head in his hands and all the energy rushes from him. "Thank you," he says quietly, "Thank you so much."

There's blood around the kid's mouth, clotted at the corners of his lips. He barely looks like he's breathing. Internal bleeding; a staple symptom of radiation poisoning. He must be one of those most affected by the radiation - so affected that the standard amount of medication in macs isn't enough.

Ace has always been scared that something like this will happen to him or - god forbid - Luffy. With such a small body and so little food, illness has always been a fear for them. But he's a tough kid, a fighter with the immune system of a monster. Radiation poisoning has never been an issue for them, not really. It's always been something that happens to other people. You see them sometimes, wandering through the streets, malnourished and lucid with fever. Their skin is always weeping and distorted, grotesque and patchy. It's illegal to wander the streets with radiation poisoning of any degree, and the government always take people in to heal them.

What nobody mentions is that 'healing' is a bullet between the eyes.

Sabo is still fuming, standing beside Ace. His face is blank but Ace can feel the tension all over him. His jaw is tightly set. There was something animal in his eyes when he went to attack Law that Ace doubts he'll ever forget. Something caged and suppressed. Something incredibly dangerous.

"I've got some on me," Law repeats. "But..."

The air thickens. Zoro and Luffy stand at the same second, and both of them look positively murderous standing side by side, in front of Chopper like bodyguards. "If you say what I think you're going to say..." Zoro warns.

Law shrugs, nonchalant. "I can't throw resources away. Not without a price."

Sabo stiffens and Ace puts a hand on his arm, ready to hold him back. "Opportunist bastard," Sabo hisses, and Luffy's friends seem to notice him for the first time. "Heartless prick!"

"It's not like it's the first time you've called me that," Law shoots back, without even looking back. Something inside of Sabo seems to crack and give in and Ace is suddenly restraining him again, feeling his thin form strain against his chest.

"Let me go!"

An idea suddenly forms in Ace's mind.

"Hey, Trafalgar," he grunts, using all of his strength to hold Sabo back. "Heal the kid. Now."

"Or what?"

"Or I let him loose," Ace says clearly, "And I give him the knife."

A split second passes. Law looks passive - no emotion shows on his face. Then, slowly, he reaches for his medical bag.

* * *

The three brothers get back at 0900, when it's already light and the city is filled to the brim with people. The apartment feels very large and very empty and sleep is inviting. Ace passes out on the couch from standing, snoring the second he hits the pillows. Sabo wants nothing more than to sleep, to close his eyes and let himself drift. But his brain feels highwired and there are too many sparks in his stomach to allow him to sleep.

The hue of morning, of light seeping through the ashy windows, does little to lull him to sleep so Sabo sits at the kitchen table alone. He thinks back over the last few hours. Apparently, Zoro and Law are going to work out an agreement about the meds. Sabo just knows that Chopper is going to be fine - he has to be, because the strawhats obviously won't allow otherwise. They already seem to protective of him and apparently they barely know the kid. It's sweet to watch.

 _Law_. Sabo's thoughts turn to the man without his permission. The man who tried to burn him to death. The teenager who befriended him. The boy trying to keep his sister safe. Trafalgar Law. Sabo had never thought that he would see him again, not after all this time. Especially not with Ace and Luffy.

"Sabo?"

The blonde glances up. Luffy is hovering in the doorway, dark shadows under his eyes that Sabo is sure he has too.

"Couldn't sleep too?" Sabo guesses. "C'mere."

Luffy is sleepy and his movements are uncoordinated as he slips into a chair. "You okay?" he slurs out.

"I'm-"

"And don't say you're fine," Luffy interrupts fiercely.

"I'm... okay. I'm okay."

Luffy groans. "Are you, though?"

"What do you mean?"

"I can never actually tell if you're okay or not," Luffy grouches. "And you always say you are even when you're not and it's  _stupid_."

"Okay. Can I promise you this time that I'm okay?"

"I... guess."

"Then I promise. I'm okay. Or, I will be."

"Then how do you feel now?"

Sabo leans back in his chair, rubbing tired eyes. "I don't really know. Tired. A bit hurt."

"Angry?"

"No," Sabo says decisively, "Not anymore."

"Not even at Traffic?"

"...No. Not really."

"Why?"

"I know I shouldn't be," Sabo responds. "I try to fight for peace and I can't just be angry at him just for doing something to save his sister. Law's not a bad person. Sure, he's not that great of a person, but he's not-"

"Wait, wait wait wait, what?"

Sabo cocks his head to the side. "What?"

"You seriously think you shouldn't be mad at him?"

"I mean- no. Not really."

Luffy stares.

"What?" Sabo asks again.

"Seriously? He tried to burn you to death!"

"I haven't forgotten," Sabo says dryly. "But he had good reason-"

"No he didn't!" Luffy's still staring at him. "There's never a good reason to try to kill somebody! Especially somebody like you!"

"I..."

"What he did sucks! That's it!" Luffy says it so ridiculously simply but when it comes out of his mouth, it kind of makes sense. "And you're allowed to be angry."

"I was angry," Sabo says quietly, "I just don't think I should be angry at him. He's a victim of the system-"

"He's a dick! Screw the system! He's a dick, that's literally all it is!"

"I-"

"And if you wanna be angry then you're not a bad person." Luffy reaches across the table and clamps a hand on either side of Sabo's face. "You're the best person I know. So screw not being angry."

Luffy stands now. He looks angry but not raging, not out of control.

"I'm going to sleep," he says shortly. "Night, Sabo." Then, like a bizarre weather change, his stormy face breaks into a wide grin. "Wanna prank Ace when we wake up?"

Sabo watches him leave, dumbfounded, and after a few seconds, says to his back, "Sure."

When he heads to bed too, he's happy.

* * *

"How are you?" Vivi asks, hands curled around her mug. Steam evaporates into into the morning air. The fire escape outside of Vivi's apartment is small and they're pressed together, shoulders against one another. It's a crisp autumn morning and Nami's fingers are cold.

"God, where do I begin?" She sighs, and her breath condenses in front of her. "It was a long night."

"There were a lot more people coming in and out than usual," Vivi comments. "What happened?"

"You know Zoro's little brother? Well, he brought him around. And there was a big panic when the kid started coughing up blood. He's okay now, we hope, but it was a scare."

"I thought I saw Zoro with somebody when he came through, but he didn't stop to talk." Vivi leans her head down on Nami's shoulder. "How did you get it under control?"

"You must have been asleep but Trafalgar Law - the boss of the Hearts, y'know the guy? - came through. And Luffy's brother too, and..."

"And?"

Nami swallows. "We've been watching this noble kid for a while. For a long time. He's human, and very suspicious, and... he was with Ace. They're close - it's obvious. He's living with Ace and Luffy, apparently."

"Doesn't Ace hate humans?"

"That's the thing - he does. A  _lot_. I don't know what happened but he and this noble guy are buddies now, for some reason, and Luffy involved. And the noble's got history with Trafalgar too-" Nami makes a frustrated noise. "It's all so confusing!"

"What's the noble's name? I might know his family, from the high district," Vivi explains.

"Sabo," Nami says, "Sabo Outlook. Why?"

Vivi appears to recognise the name, but only vaguely. "I know the name Outlook; everybody does. But he's probably not directly related to the Outlooks - maybe a distant cousin?"

Nami bites her lip. "He lives on the Stacks, so he's probably not related to them in any way anymore."

"A noble? On the Stacks?" Vivi winces. "Must've been a shock to the system for him."

"Well, whatever it was, he's a dangerous guy. Trafalgar Law was scared enough of him to let himself be threatened into healing the kid. So me and the guys are going to treat him with caution. Robin is looking into his background more right now."

"That would probably be best," Vivi agrees. Then, she murmurs, "Tell Chopper I said hi to him?"

"We will when he wakes up," Nami agrees. "I'll send him to you but... you know about the radiation poisoning, right? Just remember that the Hunt is coming up, please try to keep him out of sight."

"You don't even have to ask," Vivi says with a smile, sipping her tea. Her wingless shoulders feel warm against Nami's, and the cold air dissipates a little in the blooming heat of the morning.


	16. The Hunt

Law's eyes are smarting with pain, and he can feel the stiffness in his face that tells him that he seriously needs to get some sleep. It's midday by the time he gets back, and Bepo – infuriatingly loyal Bepo – is waiting for him at the kitchen table. Law knows that he must look like hell just by the look on the hybrid's face.

"Captain!"

Law tries to get around him but Bepo is firm, standing in his way. "Bepo-ya, I don't have the patience to argue with you."

"But-"

"I. Am. Fine. So stop fretting."

Bepo's head falls and he steps back and murmurs, "Sorry." Suddenly Law feels bad, like he's kicked a puppy, like he's done something cruel and unforgivable.

"Look," he sighs, "I didn't mean to make you worry. But it's fine, and it's nothing to worry about." He pauses, wondering if he should say it. "I saw Sabo."

Bepo stumbles back in shock and there's a muffled yelp from somewhere. Then Penguin and Shachi stumble through the door, in a mad rush to get into the room from where they've obviously been eavesdropping. Law's brow furrows in irritation but he doesn't berate them. It's just like them, to do something like that.

"You  _what_?!"

"I saw Sabo," Law repeats calmly, "And he tried to kill me."

There's a stunned silence. "Full story, please!" Shachi says after a moment, in a voice that's slightly hysterical.

Law collapses into a chair at the kitchen table. He can feel their worried stares, all three of them, but doesn't look up.

"There's not much to tell," he lies after a moment. "He was with the client. Portgas D. Ace. Sabo saw the tattoo on my wrist and kind of flipped – Portgas restrained him."

"He didn't hurt you though, right?" Penguin asks nervously.

"No, not a scratch." Law can hear the irritation in his own voice at the question. "I'm telling you – I'm fine. I just want to rest."

"But-"

"That's an order, Bepo-ya. Leave me alone. You two, too. I won't ask again."

Law's voice is steely enough that none of them dare to disobey. Slowly, glancing over their shoulders regularly, the trio wander out of the room. It's only when they're gone that Law allows himself to collapse into a chair. With a sigh, he sinks his head into his hands and rubs his tired eyes hard with his fingers.

It's all a big goddamn mess.

* * *

The Hunt is coming soon, so Marco stops going into the city. He knows that soon, it's not going to be a pleasant place to be. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

They won't be able to receive any supplies from the city for the week but it's not a big deal for the Whitebeards - they've got stores to spare. So Marco prepares for a few weeks of sitting in Wakeshead, nothing to do, wondering about Ace. It's still so hard to get the kid out of his mind, especially now that he knows that he might be in the city,  _right there_ , just out of reach. It's been nearly eight years. Too long.

Right now, however, Marco has bigger problems.

The huge entry door to the electriglass dome closes behind him. The man in front of him looks exhausted, thin and tired with large rings under his eyes, but those same eyes are filled with fire. Marco can tell immediately that this man has a goal, and that he's fiercely determined to reach it. There's something desperate about it, too, and Marco stays on-guard. Desperate people do desperate things.

"Who are you, yoi? And why are you here?"

The man gapes at him. "There's a… there's a door there. There wasn't a door there before. There's… a door."

"Yes, yoi. Now answer my question."

"I… I don't know. I'm Shanks. Charlotte Shanks."

Marco's face hardens. "You're one of them? One of Big Mom's?"

"Yes- I mean, no- I mean-" Shanks looks desperate. "I'm not one of them anymore! I swear I'm not. I ran away - I just wanted to get away from them. I had enough. I've had enough."

"And how do I know that you're not just a spy, yoi?"

Shanks looks close to falling over, and a part of Marco does feel bad for the guy. But another part, a bigger part, is suspicious. The Charlottes - a group of Fae supremacists who live out in the wilds like them - have always been their rivals. They're elitist and extreme and, frankly, terrifying. If Shanks really is leaving them, Marco doesn't blame him.

Marco decides to go with his gut.

"Look. We'll take you in - give you food, heal you up. But the second you're in good health, you're out of here. And if my father says no, then you're out of here right now. Understood?"

"Father… you're one of the Whitebeards?" Shanks asks, a little comprehension dawning on his face.

"Yes, yoi. So you'd be a fool to try anything, do you understand?"

"Yes… okay. I just need to get to the city. I'll be gone in no time, I promise," Shanks says adamantly.

"Come with me," Marco says, taking the man's arm and pulling him towards the door. A small part of him is screaming that it's a bad decision but a larger part, a more trusting part, tells Marco that he's doing the right thing. Shanks is young, in his twenties - younger than Marco - with bright red hair and sharp eyes. And Marco doesn't want to leave him out here alone.

* * *

Two weeks until the Hunt.

 _It's one thing after another_ , Sabo thinks, boxing up another set of macs and slipping one, in a smooth, quick movement, into his pocket. They're stocking up and he's taken to stealing from the conveyor, little by little, throwing caution to the wind. None of them are going to leave the apartment for the week of the Hunt - Sabo doubts that anybody will. It's a grim time. All of them are at risk; Sabo, if his parents sent in an inquiry, and Ace and Luffy just for being Fae. It's a scary time. It always has been.

Glancing around to make sure nobody notices, Sabo reaches across to one of the smaller boxes and slips a smaller sachet up his sleeve. It's lined with faded pink along the side. It's rare, only for the upper classes - flavoured mac. He knows that Luffy will love it. Nobody saw so Sabo gets on with his work, filling boxes with more food than he'll see in a month to be delivered to the richer districts. In only a few minutes, his shift is over.

They've all been working their fingers to the bone recently. Ace has been collecting clean water, trying to fill their stores, and Sabo has been on macs - Luffy has been borrowing supplies from his friends, too, like wooden boards to block up the door and one particularly large wardrobe that one of them can hide in if need be. It's a desperate time, and it calls for desperate measures. People are scared. That much is obvious.

Somebody taps Sabo's shoulder, breaking him out of his thoughts. He turns around and comes face to face with a girl with short, purple-blue hair and pale lips. She grins at him. "Daydreaming again?"

"Nojiko!" Sabo glances at the clock. "Sorry, I lost track of time. I'll see you again next week?"

"As always," the girl confirms.

She's human, and not an I, but something about her tells Sabo that she'll probably be targeted by the hunt, too. She seems like the type to not be on good terms with the government.

"Have a good shift!" Sabo tells her, and he slips her a mac as he passes. She winks over her shoulder.

"Take care of yourself, Sabo."

Outside, dawn is just breaking over the city. The sky is lightening, as mottled and grey as it always is, and for the first time in a good few weeks, Sabo fully relaxes. It's been a tough couple of weeks.

Since the emergency with Chopper and seeing Law again, Sabo has done his best to forget about it. There's so much hurt, so much anger there… he doesn't want to think about it. He doesn't want to  _feel_ it. He wants to forget that it ever happened, all of it - he doesn't look in the mirror because he's scared of seeing the scars. Sabo has a new life now, with two people who love him. He just needs to try to forget the past, like Luffy always says.

But it's  _hard_. It's so goddamn hard. The nightmares are more frequent now, after seeing Law, and even though Luffy and Ace are always there after them it doesn't make them any better. Sabo can barely walk down the street without seeing Law's face, without thinking of Shachi and Penguin and Bepo around every corner. The past is harsh and it feels as though it's right on top of him, as though it's drowning him. And he doesn't know how to feel anymore, what to say, what to think.

With a short sigh, Sabo clambers through the living room window of their apartment, glancing around. Ace is out on a job - he has been for a few days now, so he should be back sometime today - and Luffy is passed out over a pile of unfinished maths homework at the kitchen table. He has to go to school soon.

Sabo sits down across from the kid and shakes him awake, putting his bag down. "Luffy? Come on, you gotta wake up."

Luffy groans a little, and murmurs, "Don' wanna…"

"I've got some food…?"

That's all it takes. The fifteen-year old shoots up in his seat, mouth watering, practically pawing at Sabo. "Where, where?!"

"Whoa, calm down!" laughs Sabo. "It's right here - don't eat it all at once."

He tosses the strawberry-flavoured mac ration to Luffy and watches him cheer and dig in, smiling slightly.

"Fank' 'oo!" Luffy says, around a mouthful of mac.

"Anytime, Lu."

When Luffy finishes, the sky outside is still lightening and he needs to leave soon but they still talk for a while, about random things. After a while they get onto the topic of school and like always, Sabo watches Luffy's face fall at the mention of the place.

"School  _really_  sucks right now."

"Why?"

"I mean…" Luffy yawns. "I mean, it's kinda split. Me and the Fae and some of the poorer kids are all kinda scared, and we're trying to save up food from the canteen all the time, and we're all gonna take a week off to hide for the Hunt. But the other kids… they're  _laughing_ about it all the time, and they keep saying that we're gonna die and the school is gonna be pure and all that bullshit. And it all… it all just kinda sucks. I can't wait for the Hunt to be over."

Luffy glances up at Sabo, suddenly curious. "Why does the Hunt happen?"

"Good question." Sabo puffs out his cheeks. "I guess… it all started right back after the infertility, when there were Fae everywhere breeding with humans, and a bunch of the experiments from the infertility labs had escaped and were just roaming around. Hybrids. Animal-people. The humans were paranoid - they didn't like the idea of all of these hybrids wandering around, tainting the gene pool right after the huge infertility.

"So they started this huge, authorised hunt. The police would scour the states, break into houses they suspected were harbouring hybrids, and kill thousands. Civilians, humans, were given guns and allowed to volunteer to participate. It started as something regulated, a proper operation, but… it became sort of like a sport. Humans would participate to see how many hybrids they could kill in a week.

"Hybrids were dying everywhere, all the time, but there were still some left. But the Hunt was still getting a little boring for the hunters so they started changing things up a little. Killing Fae, too, and saying it was because they seemed suspicious or they looked like hybrids. Rich people started handing out 'inquiries' to hunters, about who they wanted dead. And it was hard to persecute hunters because the government didn't want the Hunt to end, so it just sort of… went on. Mass killing under the pretense of hunting for hybrids."

Luffy frowns. "Are there even any hybrids left? It's stupid…"

And there it is - the past, coming back again, mercilessly. He tries to ignore the image of Bepo in his head, wedged into the corner with Penguin and Shachi, watching with wide eyes as Sabo screams his throat hoarse at Law.

_"-trusted you! I TRUSTED YOU-!"_

"Sabo?"

Sabo wrenches himself out of the memory. "Sorry - I kinda zoned out there. Hybrids… yeah. There are a few. I used to be friends with one."

"You did?! That's so awesome!"

"Yeah… yeah. I guess it kinda is." Sabo gives a small smile, fear ebbing way. "Now, come on - you gotta go to school. Ace is going to murder me if you miss any more lessons…"

* * *

A week until the Hunt. It's raining outside. Autumn is getting colder - the nights are getting longer, and wind batters the grey district every day.

"I'm back!" Ace calls, shutting the door behind him. "And I got something awesome!"

"You're back?" Sabo sticks his head around the kitchen door.

"Something awesome?!" Luffy croons, as he tumbles into the hallway.

"Yes, something awesome. Well, probably more awesome for Sabo than you, you doof."

"Aw…"

"What is it?" Sabo asks, as Ace wanders into the kitchen. The three brothers crowd around the tiny table and from inside his jacket, Ace pulls out a small strip of white tablets.

"These."

"Holy crap…" Sabo breathes. "How the hell...?!"

"What? What is it?!"

Sabo and Ace exchange looks, and Ace grins. "These, my idiot little brother, are water filtration tablets. You put them in any dirty water, and bam! It's drinkable. Unless there's, like, a rat corpse in there or something."

"You're gross," Sabo says, without taking his eyes off the tablets. "Holy shit. Holy shit!"

Luffy raises an eyebrow. "What's the big deal, though?"

"What's the big deal?!" echoes Sabo, "Luffy, those tablets are  _so rare!_  Almost nobody can get their hands on them, not even the nobles! Each tablet can make two litres of water completely drinkable! And we could be set for water for months with just one pack… how the hell did you do it?!"

Ace smirks. "I might've had a hunch about something I heard at Blackbeard's base - I headed back to the ambassadors' building. Turns out the foreign affairs minister for Britain is here. And as they do, they're tryna' make her think that things here are better than they are, so they're pampering her - fresh, clean water and everything. So I snuck in and took what I could and then just ran. Fifty tablets."

"I knew there was a reason we kept you around," Sabo says breathlessly, "Holy crap, I could kiss you right now, you goddamn fucking moron-"

Ace mutters something under his breath that sounds like, "Come on, then."

As Ace promptly realises what he said and melts into a feathery puddle of excuses and Luffy bursts out laughing, Sabo tries to convince himself that Ace said something else, turning away as he feels his cheeks heat up. Ace rambles for a minute or so before eventually settling on saying, "It doesn't matter! Let's just get back to the topic. Luffy,  _shut up_ for the love of  _god_ -"

Sabo rolls his eyes and resolves his mind to forget about it for now. "Stealing from the ambassadors building...you could've gotten caught! You could have died!"

"But I didn't," grins Ace, apparently regaining his mojo. "And I'm not planning on doing so when we go back tonight, and rob the place dry."

Luffy cheers loudly, and Sabo throws his hands in the air and whoops along with him, and all three of them shout and laugh around the table like victorious kings.

* * *

 _Three days_  until the Hunt. And it's getting desperate.

The streets get quieter and quieter every day. More and more people show evidence of the ironing punishment - there are freshly bandaged ears covered with scar tissue on seemingly every other person. Sabo can only be glad that he and Ace and Luffy have never been subject to it. They're stocked up, piles of macs and water purification tablets stashed under the floorboards in the living room, and the front door is boarded up so they enter and exit through the window.

According to Ace, Blackbeard is getting paranoid. He's harbouring people who have inquiries on their heads, and people who are wanted, and dozens of Fae. He knows that they're going to come for his base so apparently he's going to break apart his forces to different safe houses to hide for the week. It's a smart move, but Sabo hopes that it doesn't work out. Nothing would make him happier than Blackbeard's death. Koala is still a raw wound in his heart.

People are scared. Those with radiation poisoning are going to die too, no doubt about it, and Sabo wonders where Chopper is going to hide. Hell - the Strawhats are all such wild, eccentric, unusual people. He wouldn't be surprised if half of them were wanted for some reason or another. It seems just like them.

Luffy is nervous. He's stopped going to school now in favour of spending time with his friends, and Ace doesn't protest because even he can see how scared the kid is that he'll lose them. The Hunt is always a risky time. He might well never see any of them again. But he still comes back to Ace and Sabo every day, still sleeps on top of one or both of them in the nights, still treats them like his family. It makes something inside of Sabo feel very warm.

Sabo remembers the Hunt, back when he was a kid. Law, Cora and the others would go into hiding every year - he wouldn't see them for a few weeks, at least. Stelly would watch soldiers pour through the streets, shouting and laughing, and proclaim that he wanted to be just like them one day. His father would say, "Good riddance," and his mother would nod primly, and they would both look at Sabo as if they expected him to say something to agree with them. And Sabo, ever-defiant, never would.

God knows  _that_ never ended well.

What a waste. A huge, pointless waste.

* * *

It starts at midnight. There are only minutes left now.

The streets are utterly silent. Sabo can feel the grey district holding its breath, can feel the tension in the air. Somewhere in the flats above somebody is crying loudly, little scream-like sobs of panic. It's loud in the quiet.

The windows are all covered with thick, black card. It was costly stuff, but it'll ensure that nobody can see them, at least. The apartment is very, very dark, and completely still. Sabo can feel Luffy pressed against his left side, and Ace on his right. All three of them are very close, hidden behind the barely-used bed in Luffy's room. Ace is holding onto his arm hard, and Sabo takes in the rusty smell of his hair. Luffy's legs are curled up and one of his knees is pressed against Sabo's. None of them move.

A strange need to say something to Ace rushes up inside of Sabo... and dies. The tension builds as midnight creeps closer. Somebody's phone buzzes. Ace hesitates and then pulls his out, and the screen flashes:

 **(Law):** _Don't die._

Sabo shivers and looks away. Now wouldn't be the best time to let memories overwhelm him - not when he's already so scared, not when Ace and Luffy are here. The screen of the phone lights up Luffy's face and he looks pale, and tired, and young.

Ace turns his phone off and they're plunged into darkness again. Sabo can feel his eyes stinging. He's very tired but at the same time wide awake, as they all are, adrenaline setting his stomach on fire.

"We're going to be okay," Sabo says, "I promise."

It's an empty promise and they all know it, but nobody calls him out on his bluff. Sabo can't see at all in the utter darkness but he feels Luffy nod and burrow closer, and feels Ace shift a little against him.

"I hope Chopper's okay," Luffy whispers forlornly.

"Me too."

"Hey, Sabo?" Ace asks, suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for staying with us. And being an older brother to Luffy. And thanks for doing all this, just...thank you."

Sabo shakes his head. "Please don't talk like this, Ace. Please don't. We're gonna live through this, I know we are-"

"I just needed to say it," Ace continues. "Just in case. 'Cause we love you. I... love you. Thank you for loving us."

Suddenly there's a gunshot, impossibly loud, distant but ringing through the streets like a curse. The sobs upstairs choke off into little breathy gasps of anxiety. The tension tightens - the air gets tighter. A chill creeps through Sabo, setting alight his skin, settling in his stomach. Luffy gasps a little and slaps a hand over his mouth, pressing closer still. Ace's whole body goes rigid and his fingers find Sabo's in the darkness, and they grasp hands tightly, as though desperately trying to stay close to one another. 

"That's the start," Sabo breathes. "We're going to be okay. I swear. We're going to survive this."

"Okay," Ace whispers. "Okay."


	17. Terrors

The first day is as bad as could be expected.

It's so dark. Sabo can feel his forehead throbbing - his eyes are trying desperately to adjust and it's giving him a headache. He can vaguely make out the outline of Ace's head and Luffy's knees, and he can feel them - his senses are on high alert and he can feel them both, right in his space. The tension running through Luffy, the electricity, sends Sabo's blood racing through his veins. Ace hasn't even seemed to breathe since the gunshot and Sabo realises, with alarm, that he's holding his breath

"A-Ace,  _breathe,_ " Sabo whispers quietly.

There's a small gasp for breath. "Sorry- I didn't realise-"

"It's okay," Sabo breathes back. "I know."

There's been no noise since the first gunshot. The grey district seems even quieter than before. Sabo waits with wide eyes, not wanting to move. When there's still no sound, Luffy takes a deep breath from beside Sabo and whispers, "I wanna look."

"Luffy- no!" Sabo hisses - but it's too late. Luffy's warmth leaves his side and there are near-silent footsteps, out of the door and to the hall in front of the front door. Ace stiffens and his fingers tighten on Sabo's. Sabo half-stands, wincing with every sound that Luffy makes, terrified that the gunshots are going to start right on their doorstep.

Sabo watches as Luffy approaches the door quietly, the floor creaking on the doorstep. The teen stands on his tiptoes and peers through the peephole, and there's a moment of horrible silence and then Luffy turns around, ever so slowly, a look of abject horror on his face. Sabo watches as the teen puts his own hands over his mouth, and he can see that he's breathing hard, frame tense, half-turned towards the door.

There's a loud footstep outside, and the sound of a gun being cocked.

Ace pushes himself to his feet. The floorboards creak again and Sabo's heart has never pounded this hard, and he can't remember the last time he was this scared. Luffy sinks slowly down, into a kind of crouch, hands still over his mouth. Sabo reaches the door before Ace, on feet that are trained to be silent, and he's down the hall and in front of Luffy before Ace is even out of the door.

There's another footstep, and all three of them freeze again.

Luffy grasps at Sabo's arms and Sabo accepts the tiny embrace, and in that moment he's sure that they're all going to die. That they're all going to get blown to bits by bullets.

There's another footstep, then another, then another.

They're getting farther away.

Sabo listens, without daring to even move, as the footsteps along the landing fade out of earshot. And then Ace is suddenly beside them, grabbing Luffy tightly, more relieved than he is scared as he grabs them both into a desperate, silent hug. It only lasts a moment and Sabo's brain is too adrenaline-charged to take much comfort in it. The worst isn't over yet.

"Let's get back," he murmurs. "One at a time. Ace - you go first."

Ace nods and makes little noise walking back, footsteps very light. Sabo watches his back as he goes, huge, vibrant wings almost black in the low light.

Then he turns to Luffy and whispers, "You, too."

Luffy nods and pads down the hall and into the bedroom. Sabo can see him press up against Ace, and if he strains his ears he can just make out Ace quietly berating him for being so stupid. Sabo stands but before going back to the bedroom, he peeks quickly out of the peephole. At first, all seems normal in the street below. There's nobody there, and the hunter from before is gone. But as Sabo squints, he can just about make out figures creeping through the dark - as he stares, he starts noticing glints of light reflecting off of guns and knives strapped to people's backs.

The hunters have entered the grey district.

As quietly as he possibly can, Sabo turns away from the door and tiptoes back down the hall. The bedroom is very dark and he shuts the door behind him, so that it's completely pitch black. The blonde feels his way back over to the pair, this time sitting on Luffy's other side so the youngest is sandwiched between him and Ace. Ace's huge left wing curls around his and Luffy's shoulders, its tip coming around Sabo's torso.

The air is very tight. Ace's hand finds Sabo's again, and Luffy curls himself up very tightly between them, making himself as small as possible. Sabo tries to force back his fear, tries to cover it with something better, with something useful. Ace and Luffy are both scared, even if they'd never admit it - even if they put up brave faces. Sabo has to be the strong one.

They're prepared. There are four huge jugs of water across the room. They got the water from the shower yesterday, and purified it using the tablets. It should be enough for a few days, at least. Ace also had the forethought to ration out the mac and get rid of the packets beforehand - lest they make a noise while they're trying to open them. The food is over in the corner too. Sabo should feel ready for this, should feel confident.

He absolutely does not.

* * *

Day two is worse, if anything.

Gone is the creeping around, the horrible silence. The second day dawns chilly and sharp and with the sun rises laughter, boisterous voices ringing through the empty streets. Chopper is asleep next to Zoro, and Nami can barely see his young face in the dark. The attic is very, very small. It's too hot in here, with too many bodies pressed up against one another. Vivi's hand is hot in Nami's but she doesn't let go, just carries on holding tight.

A gun goes off in the street below and Nami freezes. There's a tiny whimper from across the room and Chopper burrows closer to Zoro in his sleep. On Nami's other side, Sanji's body stiffens.

The whole group are here - even Vivi and Chopper - except for Luffy. Nami isn't angry at the kid. After all, he's got a protective older brother to deal with, and the (apparently anger-prone) Sabo. And from what Luffy's told them, Sabo might have an inquiry on his head. People who are actively wanted like that are a lot more at risk than Fae, so Nami understands why Luffy would want to stay with him.

But she can't help but feel a bit of betrayal. Luffy has always been one of them. Always one of the family. And now, when they're in the most danger they've been in all year, he isn't here. Even Sanji is here this year - apparently, his father was going to force him to be a hunter this year, and he walked out. Nami's not sure if he's going to go back. She hopes that he doesn't have to.

A loud, screeching laugh echoes from the apartment below and Nami's heart starts pounding hard. The entrance to the tiny attic is hidden in the wall, out of view, but it isn't fail-safe. Not by a long shot. A single noise, a single movement, could give all nine of them away. Even Sanji wouldn't be spared. They could all be only an inch from death.

Brook shifts a little, across the room, and his wing brushes up against the door. There are footsteps, suddenly right outside, and Nami squeezes her eyes shut with abject horror - she can feel Vivi, pressing her face into the crook of her neck, shaking. There's one terrible moment of silence. Nami's mind, bizarrely, goes to Cap. She wonders if he's still alive.

Another step. Right outside of the door.

A voice. "There's something in the wall, here!"

There's another pause and Nami curls up on instinct, limbs stiffening, every part of her on edge. She can feel the urge to hyperventilate rising in her chest. It feels as though there isn't enough oxygen in the air.

Somebody slams their hand down on the surface of the hidden door.

Nami half-stands, praying that the floor won't creak. Vivi's grip tightens on her hand. The air is so thick that somebody could shatter it.

A tense second. Chopper's eyes are impossibly wide. Something like adrenaline sweeps over Nami, cold and sharp under her skin. She takes a silent step forwards and pulls the knife from her belt and holds her breath, so tightly that it feels like her chest is going to explode.

"There's nothing there, moron. C'mon - apparently, people've found something in Block 04!"

"Ugh, fine."

Footsteps lead away from the hidden door, fading horribly slowly. Nami doesn't dare to breathe until she hears them fade completely and then she almost falls back, stumbling into Vivi's arms, adrenaline draining away and leaving her feeling completely empty.

"Nami! Are you alright?" Sanji whispers, concerned.

"Yeah… yeah, I'll be okay, I promise. I'm just- oh  _god_ , that was so close."

"Too close," Vivi breathes, and her lips find the back of Nami's hand in the dull light.

"Wait-" Zoro curses, too loudly, and there's a moment of terror. But nobody seems to have heard so the swordsman continues, frantically, "Block 04 is where Luffy lives!"

* * *

It's the third day of the Hunt over in the city, and Shanks is on a rampage.

"Wait, lemme get this straight - in this city right on your damn doorstep, they hold a goddamn  _killing_  spree every year, and you do nothing to stop it? You just sit by and watch?!"

"My father tried to stop it when he was regulator, but nothing could be done, yoi," Marco says in a level voice. "There's  _nothing we can do_."

"Seriously?!" Shanks is a youthful ball of rage, red hair flying, eyes on fire, and he gets right up in Marco's face. "You couldn't even offer them any help? Any refuge?! You've got miles of land out here! Rooms upon rooms upon rooms, and you can't even offer any space to the people  _dying_ out there?!"

Now it's Marco's turn to lose his cool. "Listen to me, yoi. We're not the villain. We took you in, nursed you back to health. We've agreed to house you as long as you need it. We're good people. But above anything else, we care about family. Letting you in was a risk. If anybody from the city finds out that this place exists, we could all die. Every one of us. And that would be the end of this family - and we can't allow that to happen."

Shanks stares him in the eyes for a long moment and then looks away, snorting in disdain. "You're just like the Charlottes," he says bitterly, "All you care about is yourselves!"

"That's not true, yoi."

"Then all you care about is your 'family'? Is that it?!" Shanks' voice breaks. "My godson could be in that city! It's been eight years since I last saw the kid and he- he could be dying out there, because all you care about is your family. Tell me, Marco, how would you feel if one of your family was out there-"

"Shut up."

"-Dying, hiding away in fear of being murdered, because you can't get off your arse and help-"

"Shut up…!"

"-Being torn apart by bullets, all because you don't seem to care about anything but yourse-"

"SHUT UP!"

Shanks' mouth closes and he stares Marco down with a victorious grin. "You get what I mean?"

"I do." Marco tightens his jaw and looks up, meeting Shanks' eyes. He doesn't look as undone as he sounded a minute ago. "But the system we have is risky already. We can't give up on Wakeshead. We have to be careful, and we-"

"Fine." The grin is gone. "I get it. You can leave people to die, so long as it doesn't do any damage to your precious  _system_."

"You're so stubborn!" Marco growls.

"That's what my ma used to say, and she was a dictator." Confident that he's gotten the last word but with anger brewing under his skin, Shanks turns on his heel. "I'm going back to the med bay. The quicker I heal up from that poison my ma slipped me, the better!" he calls pointedly over his shoulder.

"You don't need to remind me, yoi," Marco says weakly, but Shanks is gone.

His family aren't bad people. Marco knows it. He's lived here for too long to think that they could be anything close to evil - but at the same time…

The conviction in Shanks' eyes doesn't leave Marco's mind for a long time.

* * *

Day four. Ace is at the end of his tether.

Day two was hell. Apartment B12, the one  _right next to theirs_ , was broken into. There were screams, but not just immediately. Not just for the kill. Ace knows the woman who lives next door - a young woman, Fae, called Makino. They  _tortured_  her, for hours. Her screams eventually stopped sounding like screams at all. Ace is never going to forget the sight of Luffy pressing his hands over his ears, pushed up against Sabo, while the blonde himself looked like he was going to cry. He's never going to forget the sound of her screams. It took four hours,  _four hours_ , for them to finally cut off into nothing. Ace didn't know whether to be relieved or not.

After that horrible ordeal, none of them could do anything but close their eyes and pray for sleep. But even that was a mistake – when Sabo woke up, he had to shoo a rat away from the huge container of mac, but it was too late. A huge chunk of their reserves, over half of their food supplies, are gone, just like that. It doesn't seem like so much anymore.

Luffy isn't trying to whisper things every few seconds anymore. He hasn't said anything since day two, since Makino's screams. He hasn't even gotten up. He's only eaten what Sabo pushes into his hands and Ace can't see him very well but he knows that he's upset, or angry, or scared, or something. Ace just prays that he isn't completely empty. That might just be the last straw for Ace.

Right now, however, he's asleep on the bed. Sabo and Ace sit against the side, on the floor, shoulders pressed together tightly. Neither of them talks. Outside, the world is breaking apart – there are more screams now, more shots. The laughter is louder than ever. The Hunt rages right on their doorstep and Sabo is still so tense, still so quiet in the face of all this.

"Are you okay?" Ace whispers. "And don't you dare tell me that you're fine. You gotta stop doing that."

Sabo breathes out, very quietly. "You were crying. When that woman died," he says instead. "Did you know her?"

"I…" Ace lowers his voice still, even though it was barely audible before. "Yeah. Her name was Makino. She used to make Luffy lunch to take to school, back when we first moved in. Luffy adored her."

"I'm sorry." Sabo says. "No, forget that. I'm  _sorry_ \- about everything. About the Hunt, about what this city has put you guys through-"

"You don't need to be sorry," Ace whispers, "It wasn't your fault. None of it was."

"I wish I could change things."

"Someday we will." Ace shoulder nudges a little closer up against him. "How did you notice I was crying?"

"Your hands were wet." Sabo laughs quietly. "And I guess I'm used to people crying."

"Yeah, well," Ace pretends to grumble, "You  _never_  cry, so leave the rest of us normal people alone. I mean, I've cried – what, four or five times since we met? And most of the time it's just because of something stupid, like stubbing my toe."

Sabo laughs quietly, but his smile falls after a moment. "I did cry, once. When we first met."

"Under the bridge? I don't remember you crying."

"It was only a little bit, like getting something stuck in my eye. You told me… you told me that no noble was able to understand what it was like to care about people. And then you asked why you hadn't killed me yet, and I guess… I guess it was just frustrating. Because I spent years trying to be an outlier, trying to be a good person. And… you had a right to be angry. You did. It just kinda hurt."

"I'm sorry," Ace whispers. "Think what you want, but… I had no right to say something like that. If it helps, I know you're a good person now. A better person than I'll ever be."

Sabo laughs a little, resting his head on Ace's shoulder. "I doubt that. I think… we're both just trying. To change. To be good people and do good things. And it seems like a stupid thing to try to do but it feels good to try."

"I like that." Ace laughs a little. "Fuck it – should we sleep?"

"What about the mac?"

Ace reaches across, grabs the container and pushes it under the covers. In his sleep, Luffy curls around the cylinder and Ace pulls his hand away, moving instead to wrap his wings around Sabo. It's a little too hot and a little too feathery for Sabo's tastes but he doesn't complain, because it feels good. For the first time in days, he fully relaxes, pressing his face into the crook of Ace's neck. In the darkness, it doesn't feel awkward or strange. Ace nuzzles his hair slightly and for once, Sabo can tell that neither of them is pretending that this isn't...whatever it is. Neither of them is making excuses - not here and now.

"Thanks for everything, Ace," Sabo murmurs.

"You can thank me after we survive this," promises Ace.

* * *

Day five. Only two days left. And it's getting worse.

There was a lot of screaming upstairs last night, and the trio woke to a nasty surprise- there's blood dripping down in wall in the bedroom, from a crack in the ceiling. Evidently, there's another family dead. They didn't dare to move rooms so the trio just sit in the corner now, huddled side-by-side, nostrils filled with the rusty smell of wet blood. Luffy appears to have gained his voice back and he whispers stories to Sabo in the dark, about Makino and how good her food was and how kind she was and about how she didn't deserve that, oh god, she didn't deserve it.

"I used to stay with her when Ace was away," Luffy whispers mournfully. "She called me kitten sometimes, or something like that, and I used to say I didn't like it but I did."

Sabo had never imagined that he'd ever want to get out of Ace and Luffy's apartment this badly. The shots have calmed down a little, but only a little. It feels as though the trio are the only ones alive in the whole world. With every person who stamps past the front door, a little part of Sabo's nerve cracks.

 _Two more days,_  he tells himself. His mind rebels against the idea – it tells him that two days is too long. That he can't survive this that long.

They're running out of food. The water is depleted to half a jug, and it isn't nearly enough but it's going to have to do. The mac tastes stale and bitter and there's next to none left. Both Ace and Sabo give their portions to Luffy but he doesn't want to eat. None of them want to, really, when the scent of blood is so thick in the air. This is hell, Sabo decides, absolute hell. Fuck the Hunt. Fuck the hunters. Fuck everything.

_Luffy's only fifteen._

But the anger doesn't last – it doesn't take long for the fire to flicker out. By the time night rolls around on the fifth day (though it doesn't feel like night time. Everything's so dark that it seems to always be night now), Sabo is done being angry. He sits across from his brothers and listens to the hunters in the street outside. He can hear a group of them playing a loud game of cards. Another horde of them are doing shots. They're enjoying themselves. There are police – law enforcement – in their midst, and they're partying even with the blood of innocent people on their hands-

Sabo feels defeated. "I hate being scared," he whispers to Ace. "I hate it."

"Me too," agrees Ace.

Night rolls around and with it come the gunshots again, ringing through the air all-too close to their apartment. The night is filled with the sound of distant shattering glass, and Sabo prays for it to end.

He's done fighting, at least for tonight. The blood- the hopeless look on Luffy's face- Ace crying… it's all taken it out of him, leaving Sabo completely void of any feeling at all.

Sabo doesn't sleep, and day five rolls seamlessly into day six. A day, a night and a day – then it's over. On midnight on the seventh day, everything is finished. The hunters will return to their families. The grey district and the Stacks will start to rebuild. Care for their wounded. Mourn for their dead. Haggle over the houses of those who didn't make it. Business as usual. Sabo can't wait – quite literally – he feels as though he can't take another minute here. The blood stinks. All three of them need a shower desperately. There are bruises on his hips from sleeping on the ground.

It's so dark in here that the outside light is probably going to be rough on the eyes. Sabo mentions it to Luffy and the kid looks right at him and says, "This sucks."

"I know, Lu. But it's almost over. Just a little longer…"

Ace slumps over onto Sabo's shoulder. "This one was worse than last year's. Maybe more hunters turned up?"

"I remember it on the Stacks last year," Sabo mentions vaguely. "The hunters had a game – they would use the hangers as targets. And if they happened to hit a few living Fae, too, then it was all the better. It was pretty… tough. I guess."

"Wait, 'hangers'? You mean the people…?"

"Yep," confirms Sabo. "That's what people used to call them-"

"God this is fucked up."

"You don't need to tell me that." Sabo squares his jaw. "C'mon. Just a little bit longer, we just have to survive a little longer..."


	18. Rebuild

****Twenty-four hours left.

The hunters are running out of things to kill. In the dead of night they roam the streets and Sabo can hear them. They don’t sound to jovial anymore. They sound angry. They sound frustrated. They’ve rinsed the grey district dry, and they’re running out of entertainment. Ace is asleep, oblivious to the dire situation outside, but Sabo knows that Luffy can hear it. Hundreds must be dead. Thousands injured. But the hunters still hunger for blood. 

After one particularly loud yell from outside, Ace jolts awake. Sabo hears him breathe hard for a minute, looking around, before settling back against the wall beside him. His stomach rumbles. They’re out of food, and Ace and Luffy - unused to such intense periods of no eating even despite where they live - aren’t taking the loss well. Sabo is more used to it, but even he isn’t fond of the hunger pangs. 

There are running footsteps across the hallway outside. Ace inhales sharply and Sabo rubs his arm, reminding him to breathe. 

More footsteps. Sabo shifts closer to the bed, pulling Ace with him. Luffy is frozen, sitting in the doorway. 

_ Not now,  _ Sabo prays silently.  _ Not now. We’re so close _ .

There’s a knock on the boarded-up door. 

For a moment, all three of them are too shocked to move. Sabo’s heart stutters in his chest - he feels the world shift underneath him. Ace stiffens like a board. Luffy makes a small, desperate noise in the back of his throat. 

There’s another knock, this time on the window - louder, this time, rougher. More persistent. And then Sabo’s brain is suddenly in overdrive. He grabs Ace by the arm and pulls them both under the bed, pressing up against the back wall. “Luffy!” he hisses, “Get under here!”

Luffy doesn’t move. 

“Luffy.” Ace’s voice sounds like it’s about to break. “Luffy. Get in here. Now.  _ Please _ .”

More knocking on the window. Muffled voices. They sound angry. 

Luffy stands up. 

“Don’t you dare - no, don’t you dare! Please don’t do this!” 

Ace tries to scramble out from underneath the bed, hand reaching for Luffy’s ankle, and Sabo pulls him back on instinct. They both watch with bated breath as the teen tucks his wing into his sweatshirt, wrapping the appendage around his own waist. 

More knocking still. It’s so loud now that somebody might as well be trying to shatter the glass. 

Luffy starts walking down the hall. 

Sabo starts pushing himself out from under the bed, adrenaline shooting through his veins. His younger brother hovers in front of the door for a moment, hand outstretched towards the handle, the tip of his wing sticking out from under his sweatshirt-

The window in the living room shatters. 

There’s a terrible moment of silence and then the sound of shards of glass hitting the floor. Then there’s a scraping sound, another footstep. 

Another. 

Another. 

Luffy stands in the hallway, in front of the entryway to the living room. When the hunter finally steps into the hall, Sabo can barely hold in his gasp. Ice floods his veins. For a minute, his brain can’t process what he’s seeing. 

The hunter is so large that his entire form seems to dwarf Luffy. The teenager looks up at him, no hint of fear in his frame. For a long moment, nothing moves. The huge man has a very large gun over his shoulder, and his neck looks almost as thick as Luffy’s whole body. He looks like he could snap him like a twig. Sabo barely breathes. He barely notices Ace pulling him back under the bed. He can’t tear his eyes away from the front door, from Luffy’s back. 

Painstakingly slowly, the hunter gives Luffy a once-over. “Human?”

“Yes,” Luffy says too quickly. He looks like he isn’t meeting the man’s eyes. “There’s nothing here for you. It’s just me.”

“Oh, so the front door is boarded up for no reason?” The hunter snorts derisively. “Out of the way, kid.”

Luffy keeps his chin up. “No. There’s nothing in this house for you.  _ Leave _ .”

The huge hunter stares down at him for a moment, impassive. Then there’s a movement quicker than Sabo can see and Luffy slams into the wall, head hitting the surface with a low ‘crack’. He slides down to the floor and the guard strides right past, and Sabo can hear Ace’s teeth grinding together with anger. 

But to his credit, Luffy pushes himself back up, supporting himself against the wall. Sabo can hear the hunter walking through the kitchen, still with those slow, deliberate steps. Luffy stumbles after him and then Sabo can hear him, saying, “ _ Leave _ . The hunt is almost over. Just leave, or I’ll make you leave.”

“Outta the way, pipsqueak.” There’s another thump, a small noise of pain. Then the hunter walks back into the hallway,  _ into the bedroom Sabo and Ace are in _ , and Luffy doesn’t follow him. 

Sabo holds his breath, eyes wide. Ace grabs his arm as they watch the large boots in the doorway move to the side of the bed. The hunter kneels down and the covers move - he’s obviously looking through the bed. Sabo squeezes his eyes shut and tries not to breathe. 

The hunter kneels down further. He must be looking right at them. 

_ Please say it’s too dark. Please.  _

There’s an impossibly long moment. Then suddenly the hunter stretches his hand out under the bed and Sabo pulls his arms back, staring with wide-eyed as his hands feel around where Sabo’s arms just were. He feels under the bed for just a minute and Sabo tries not to breathe, tries not to even twitch. 

The hunter stands up. 

Ace is shaking. Sabo still doesn’t move, not until he can see the hunter back in the hallway. His head is spinning.  Relief, thick and overpowering, washes over him. 

Luffy stumbles back into the hallway. 

“Get out,” he says, and it sounds slightly slurred. “Get… get outta here.”

The hunter stares for a moment and then his back goes stiff, his whole body moves and he grabs Luffy by the hair and throws him into the wall. 

Ace makes a tiny noise like a stifled scream of rage. He’s holding Sabo’s arm so tightly that the area is going numb. Luffy hits the wall hard but this time he doesn’t fall - this time, he staggers back to his feet. He raises his fists like a boxer, like he’s going to fight the hunter. 

Big mistake. 

The hulking man pulls back his fist and punches Luffy across the face so hard that his whole body spins, and then he kicks him in the back, sending him careening forwards. The ‘thwap’ that Luffy makes when he hits the ground is audible even from under the bed. Sabo realises that his fists are clenched so tightly that his fingernails are drawing blood. 

Slowly, the hunter presses his foot down onto the top of Luffy’s spine - right where the joint of his wingbone meets his back. Luffy writhes, wriggling madly, but doesn’t scream. Sabo can barely stand to watch and do nothing to stop it. 

“You sure you’re human, kid?” the hunter asks, a hint of a jeer in his tone. 

“Yes,” Luffy gasps out. “I’m sure. Just  _ go _ .”

With a little, cruel laugh, the hunter removes his foot. Sabo lets out a tiny breath of relief. It has to be over now. It  _ has  _ to be. 

“It’s getting light,” the hunter observes causally. Then, he steps back and says, “If any of the hunters find anybody here, you’re dead.”

It takes an excruciatingly long amount of time for the hunter to leave. Sabo listens, tense in every part of his body, as his slow, heavy footsteps fade down the hallway. Then he and Ace are both scrambling out from under the bed - Ace hurls himself forwards and down the hallway and to his knees in front of Luffy. Sabo is as careful as he can possibly be as he rolls the younger over, trying not to crush his wing. 

“Luffy!” Ace has no caution - he’s wild, untamed mess of worry. He grabs Luffy by the shoulders and shakes him hard. “Luffy, Luffy!”

There’s a laugh in the street below and Sabo motions for Ace to zip it. Morning light is starting to pour into the room from the broken window in the living room and together, Sabo and Ace pull Luffy up and into the bedroom, closing the door behind them. 

Laying Luffy down on the bed, Sabo feels along his forehead. There’s blood, wet at the corner of his mouth, and a little swelling. For a minute, Sabo’s sure that he’s unconscious. Ace sits on his other side and Sabo can vaguely see him lean over and put his head in his hands. 

“I’m a failure,” Ace whispers. “A failure of an older brother. And I- I mean-” 

“It wasn’t your fault,” Sabo tries, even as guilt curls in his own stomach. 

“S-Sabo? Ace?”

Ace’s head snaps up. Luffy’s voice sounds small but somehow not weak. 

“You worried the hell out of us - are you okay?” Sabo whispers. 

“I… yeah. Yeah! I’m okay!” Luffy sounds almost proud of himself.

The dam breaks, and then Ace is hugging Luffy so hard that he can’t breathe. “Don’t  _ ever _ do that again,” Ace murmurs. “I thought you were going to die, Luffy, don’t do that to me. Please don’t.”

Luffy nods, but Sabo knows deep down that he would if he had to. He doesn’t say anything, though, just lets relief course through him like a tide. 

* * *

The hunt is over. It ends like it began, with one final gunshot. Most of the hunters have already gone home by the end - to their safe, unaffected houses and their clean beds. They’ll sleep well, Sabo knows. They don’t care about the wreckage that they’ve left behind.

The second the last gunshot rings out, Ace switches on the bedroom light. He doesn’t care for caution - Sabo doesn’t either. The last day has been a mass of worry and both of them are too concerned about Luffy to wait until morning. 

The kid shoves them off, however. “I’m fine!”

“That asshole beat the hell out of you!” Ace says incredulously. 

The light is dull but after days of darkness it’s stinging Sabo’s eyes and he suddenly realises that his head feels kind of light. The last time he slept was day four. He’s struck with the sudden urge to lie down. 

“Yeah, but that was hours ago! Can we just sleep?”

Sabo leans his head back against the wall and breathes out slowly through his nose. “He’s right, Ace.”

“What are you-” Ace’s voice cuts off. “Sabo? You alright there?”

“Sabo?”

Sabo shakes his head slightly, and even that small movement causes a wave of nausea to rush over him. “Tired,” he manages to grit out. “And my head-”

He closes his eyes against the for a moment, and when he opens them again, Ace and Luffy are both right in his field of vision. Both of them look exceptionally worried. 

Ace seems to realise something, and his face darkens. “When was the last time you ate? Or slept? Or even drank anything?”

Sabo squints up at him. “I slept on day four, I think…”

“And when did you eat?” 

“Don’ remember.” Sabo groans a little. “Please turn the light off.”

“Alright, got it,” Ace’s worried voice says. A moment later, the room is plunged into darkness. “You need to drink - do we have anything left, Luffy?”

“We don’t,” Sabo answers, before Luffy even has time to answer. He feels unsteady on his feet. “I’m gonna… gonna lie down…”

A hand on his arm guides him to the bed. It still smells of blood and Sabo tastes bile in the back of his throat. The pillows are soft but cold, but he doesn’t pay much attention to them. His mouth feels like it’s full of cotton wool.

“My brothers are both idiots,” Ace says, and he sounds sad. 

The world fades into grey. 

_ It’s finally over. _

* * *

As soon as dawn breaks, Zoro is up and out of the attic. It’s startlingly bright, even in the dull morning light, after all those days in the attic. His limbs feel too long for his body, strangely uncoordinated. Spending so many days not moving is taxing on his mobility.

But still - he has a job to do. Zoro ignores the aches and pains and walks through the grey district at a steady pace. It’s eerie, like a ghost town; blood covers the ground in patches. Only days ago, this place was a warzone. Now, the hunters are gone. Nobody has dared to leave their houses yet but Zoro can see pale faces in windows, can feel the stares on his back. Hundreds are dead, and the scent of their blood is thick on the air. But Zoro knows that the people of the grey district will get back up. They’ll live on.

Block 04 has obviously taken a beating. There’s blood on the fire escape, and more of it still on the stairs leading up to the apartments. Zoro can feel his heart pounding as he moves up the stairs and into the hallway on the second floor. There are bullet shells scattered across the ground, and the front windows to nearly every apartment are broken. The door of apartment B11 is intact but the front window is shattered, exposing the living room to the outside world. Cautiously, Zoro clambers in. 

There’s a knife at his throat before he’s even fully through the hole.

Ace is a mess. His hair is sticking up in every direction and there are deep bags under his eyes. There’s something horribly angry in his frame as he holds the knife to Zoro’s skin, as if he’d do anything to keep the people inside safe. As if he’s got nothing else to lose. 

“I’m just here to check on Luffy,” Zoro says slowly. “I swear. That’s all I’m here to do.”

With a ‘tch’, Ace lowers his knife. “It’s been a rough few days,” he says, and his voice is scratchy. 

“Tell me about it.” Zoro glances around the room. “Where’s Luffy?”

“Asleep in the bedroom.” 

Ace leads Zoro into the hallway and points into a room next to the kitchen. It’s small, barely a cupboard, and Zoro can make out two bodies under the covers. A tuft of black hair is dark against the pillows, next to a head of curly blonde hair that looks like Sabo’s.

“Is he okay?” Zoro asks quietly.

Ace sighs. “Come on.”

The kitchen is very small too, little more than a box. Ace sits him down at the table and takes the other seat, rubbing his dark eyes. For a minute or so, neither of them speaks. The apartment is very quiet. The vague coppery scent of blood in in the air here, too. 

“A hunter got in,” Ace says eventually. “Luffy tried to hold him off. You know how the kid is - too brave for his own damn good.”

“What happened?”

“Luffy’s okay, if that’s what you’re asking. He just got battered a bit. And Sabo’s worn out to hell - I should’a known the idiot was leaving all the food for us - I think they both just need a rest. We’re all… tired. Really tired,” Ace settles on. “What happened with you and the rest of his friends?”

Zoro shrugs one shoulder. “Same as every year. We hid in an attic over in the Sabaody district, all of us. Nearly got caught a few times, but it could’ve been worse. None of us are dead.”

“That’s good.” Ace sighs. “You should go. Y’know, check back in on Luffy’s friends. I’ll let him know that you called, and that you guys are all alive.”

Picking up on the fact that he’s being kicked out, Zoro nods and stands. Ace stays sitting and Zoro moves to the door to let himself out, but in the doorway he pauses, looking back. 

“What is it?” asks Ace. “There somethin’ wrong, or…?”

“I…” Zoro looks like he wants to say something but then he shakes his head. “Never mind. It’s no big deal.”

Ace opens his mouth like he’s going to ask for details but before he can get the words out, Zoro is gone. 

* * *

Sabo wakes up very quickly, shooting upwards in bed, breathing hard, panicked about something that he can’t recall. At first, for some bizarre reason, he thinks he’s back on the Stacks. It feels strangely warm for the trailer, though-

Ace’s face is suddenly in his field of vision, and Sabo realises that there’s a hand on his shoulder. With a jolt, reality rushes back. The small bedroom of apartment B11 still smells like blood. The bed is warm because Luffy is lying in it, fast asleep. And Ace is right in front of Sabo, looking at Sabo kind of like he’s a bomb that’s about to explode. 

“...Ace?” Sabo manages to ask, eventually. 

“Morning to you too, sunshine.” Ace cracks a smile but only now, in the light from the now-uncovered windows, can Sabo see how tired he looks. “You slept for a while. Luffy was worried.”

“How long was I out?” Sabo’s throat hurts, like somebody tried to choke him out in his sleep. 

“Well, I say good morning as in ‘good tuesday morning’. As in, you slept for over thirty hours.”

Sabo nearly falls out of bed. “Ace, that’s a  _ coma _ .”

“Well, technically, but you seemed fine!”

Sabo starts laughing then - the sound forces its way out of him without his permission. It comes out croaky and Ace looks at him weirdly for a moment but then Sabo carries on laughing, the urge to let it all out consuming him. Ace chuckles a little too, and then his laugh rises as well and then they’re both laughing… 

And then Sabo’s vision is blurring, Ace’s hands are shaking, they’re sharing a hug so fierce that Sabo’s head reels with it. Sabo doesn’t realise that he’s crying until the tears run out and the laughter fades and he’s left, feeling small, on the bed. 

He just about manages to muster the energy to smile at Ace as he says, “We actually made it. It’s over.”

“I know,” Ace replies.

“We survived!”

“I know!”

By this point, Luffy has woken up and he’s staring at the pair of them like they’ve gone mad. There’s a deep cut stretching down from the corner of his lip and he’s a little pale, a little thin, but he looks okay. He’s alive. 

Sabo smiles again, this time more firmly, and Luffy grins right back. “Sabo! You slept for  _ so long, _ Ace was totally worried about you!”

“Oi, I was not!” Ace defends. “I was… just acting like anybody else would’ve in that situation!”

“You were sooo worried,” Luffy laughs, “You couldn’t even sleep!”

“Yeah, well, you slept nearly the entire time, that’s worse!”

“La la la, I can’t hear you, worrybutt!”

“Worrybutt?! Who’re you calling a worrybutt you little-”

Sabo sits back and just takes it in for a second. Luffy’s wing looks a little bent, the ridges of bone a little too far pressed against one another, but there’s a bandage around the base of the wingbone and Sabo guesses that Ace probably got Law to check it out. Strangely, the thought of the man doesn’t hurt as much as it did a week ago. Sabo didn’t think about him at all when the Hunt was raging outside their door, and it kind of feels like a detox. Like the wounds left by Law aren’t quite as raw as they were a week ago. 

Luffy glances up at him. “You are feeling better though, right?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. Hungry, I guess-”

“Yeah, actually, I meant to bring that up.” Ace scowls. “Tell me the truth. How much did you eat?”

“I mean, I- plenty, I mean- I-” 

Sabo deflates. He’s a good liar but Ace knows him better than perhaps anybody in the world right now. 

“I had a handful on the first night.”

“And…?”

“And that was it,” Sabo murmured. “And I had a mouthful of water on the first four days and then… nothing after that, until the final night.”

“You’re…” Ace can’t seem to come up with adequate words. “You’re such an idiot. Did you think we were going to be angry if you ate too much? Is that it?”

“No,” Sabo murmurs. “I just… I didn’t want to take what’s yours. You guys have done so much for me and I… I couldn’t just drain all of your food, especially not on a week like the Hunt. I couldn’t do that to you.” 

A warm, feathery mesh worms its way around Sabo’s waist. Luffy’s wing might be broken, or bruised, but he still uses it as he always has. “You don’t have to worry about us.”

“It’s not that easy, Lu.”

“No, you don’t get it.” Luffy suddenly beams. “We have to worry about each other! And if you died then you gotta understand that we’d both be angry and sad and scared and we don’t want you to die, just like you don’t want us to die. So don’t do everything you can just to keep us safe, ‘cause… that’s not what it’s about. We’re all brothers so we all just take care of each other - it’s not just you taking care of us.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Ace says. 

“It does!”

Sabo laughs a little, feeling at home. “Nah, Luffy’s kinda right. It does make sense - to me it does, anyway.”

“You sap,” Ace tells him, “Don’t pull that shit again. Honestly, why do I even put up with you two…”

Luffy laughs. “Come on, let’s go eat before Sabo really does die! Shishishishi!”

 


	19. Grey

The next few days are honestly some of the best of Sabo's life.

The days after the Hunt are almost surreal. The air is ashy and thin, and cold with the first traces of winter, and the grey district comes to life slowly. Glass litters the street from broken windows, scattered like crystal over the ground. Everything still smells of blood. Sabo lets Ace force food on him and watches out of the kitchen window as, slowly, people emerge from their broken houses. It's like watching something raw, something brilliantly truthful. Like watching the world be born again.

Fae hug in the streets, reunited with loved ones. The wounded line up single-file in front of medics who have set up little stations on the concrete ground. Body bags are lined up along the side of the street, ready to be carried out into the wilds and burnt, and scavengers collect bullet shells and shards of glass to sell to the factories so they can be melted down and rebuilt anew. People cry openly in the streets, clutching loved ones, lamenting their dead. The sky is grey with ash but nothing is blue and there's something hopeful in the scene - something real.

"You alright?" Ace asks, waving a hand in front of Sabo's face.

He jolts back to reality. "Yeah. Sorry, it's… different from how the Stacks used to be. People look like they're actually pulling together."

"It's the only time people actually cooperate," Ace chuckles. "What used to happen on the Stacks?"

Sabo shudders, sinking a little in his seat. "People just got more competitive. People who were left homeless would kick others out of their trailers, kill them if they had to. It was a dangerous time of year, I guess - I remember it was only just calming down last year when I… when I first met you."

"I remember. Just before Christmas, right?"

"Yeah."

Ace picks at a dent in the table with his fingernail. "I can't believe it's nearly been a year."

"Yeah," Sabo sighs. "Though, it took us a while to sort our shit out and start liking one another, huh?"

"I tried to kidnap you," Ace deadpans. "Of course you didn't like me."

"Yeah, but… I'm glad we're together now," Sabo smiles.

Outside, two children run across the street hand-in-hand, skinny shoulders covered with ash. Their laughter is faint from up here but Sabo can see it and it lifts some of the heaviness in his heart. The Hunt truly is over. It feels almost hopeful.

There are footsteps, along the hall outside and to the broken window. Ace has slung dark fabric across the broken window and Sabo can hear somebody move it aside, and a second later, Luffy darts into the room on light feet.

"How are they?" Ace asks.

"Good! I mean, Vivi's still a bit shook up and all that, but they're all moved back into the den." Luffy grins, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Zoro told me to tell you that he's glad you're awake, Sabo!"

Sabo and Ace exchange glances. "I guess… I appreciate it…" Sabo says cautiously.

"He came around on the first morning, when you guys were still asleep. I think he gets that you and Luffy are pretty close now," Ace explains.

"How so?"

"I mean… it's not like he saw you two cuddling on the bed or anything," Ace snickers. "That  _definitely_ didn't happen."

"That's…" Sabo puffs out his cheeks. "Look - I had nothing to do with it. I just passed out and Luffy took advantage of my prone form for… cuddles."

"Sorry," Ace snickers, "Say that a little louder?"

"Cuddles," Sabo mutters.

"Pardon?"

" _Fuck you._ "

Luffy looks at the pair arguing like it's a tenis match, still thrumming with energy, and laughs loudly when Sabo finally snaps. "You two are dumb," he tells them, squeezing onto Sabo's chair with him.

"That's a lot coming from you!" Ace defends.

"It's true, though!"

"If anything, you two are the dumb ones." Ace frowns. "Starving yourselves, trying to fight the hunters, honestly, what the  _fuck_."

"You would've done the same," Sabo defends, nibbling on a piece of mac from the open packet on the table. "I know you."

"Yeah, but-!" Ace groans. "It's not the same. I'm the oldest!"

"Yeah, and I'm the tallest - what does it matter?"

Ace stands. "No way. No way in hell. No way are you taller than me, you big dumb loser."

Sabo rises too, moving to stand back-to-back with Ace. "Luffy, mind telling Ace that he's wrong?"

They stand in the middle of the kitchen for a moment, each straining to stand up straight, and Luffy judges it for a second before saying, "Yep, Sabo's definitely taller. By, like, three inches."

"You're a lying liar," Ace grumbles, sitting back down. "No way in hell. I'm the tall one."

"Is somebody jealous?" Sabo teases. Just to rub salt into the wound, he reaches across and squeezes Ace's cheek like an old lady. "D'aw, poor lil' Acey-"

"Shut the fuck up!"

The warm conversation continues through the morning, and Sabo can honestly say that he can feel his frayed nerves healing, slowly but surely. Yes, things aren't alright. They're not going to be for a long time. The Hunt was hell, all of it, every second of the damned thing. But it's over. It's in the past. The world moves on, and Sabo has his brothers.

He looks at the other two as the trio talk, looks at them properly. First, Luffy -  _Luffy_ , who is always covered with tiny insignificant bruises but now carries the swelling on his cheek like a war wound. Small, skinny, spunky Luffy, who lives in the pure defiance of his own existence, who is followed every day by stares riveted to his single wing but doesn't seem to care in the slightest for the attention he receives. The carefree, adventurous youth that Sabo never got to become.

And Ace. God,  _Ace_. There's something hot and hard and scary burning beneath his skin; he is all war. He's jaded and world-weary and sometimes it's like he's lost all hope but other times Sabo can see him burning, can make out the flames in his eyes, and there's something so angry about him that it's hard to ignore - angry at the world, angry at this city, angry at himself. So cold he's boiling over. Sometimes it seems like all Ace  _is_  is anger; sometimes it's almost as though it's the only thing that keeps him grounded. But then he beams at Sabo, stars in his hair and sparks in his eyes and all that anger just seems to go away.

Sabo closes his eyes and stops thinking so hard.

And life goes on.

The trio spend the first morning pulling out the nails attaching the boards to the front door, and then the afternoon patching up the smashed window with the same boards. Ace calls it recycling. Zoro visits once more in the afternoon, bringing with him cans of stale water and more mac rations and news from the den – everybody is okay and alive and things are going to go back to normal soon. Slowly, but they will. Sabo hopes that he's right.

Ace tells Sabo, quietly, that Luffy has a screaming nightmare last night that woke half of the block. He was in a panic for half an hour after he woke up, yelling about the darkness and blood and hunters and it hurts Sabo's heart to hear about it. With every mention of the Hunt, he hates the thing a little more. Needless death. Needless suffering. What a horrible, pointless waste.

The chilling silence that once surrounded the grey district fades. By Wednesday morning, the body bags have been hauled off into the wilds to be burnt – people don't linger long to mourn their lost loved ones. Thieves sell junk stolen from ownerless houses. Those left homeless are taken in because the police are eager right now, desperate to pick people off now that the district is so vulnerable, and people seem eager to band together against a common enemy. Luffy has nightmares again on Tuesday night, right through the night until dawn, and Sabo barely sleeps at all because his high-wired brain won't let him.

But things are still  _good_ , somehow. Ace is smiling a lot. The bruises are fading. The air is getting looser and people are getting less scared and the feeling of things getting better, even if it's simply because they can't get much worse than they were for the Hunt, is comforting. It feels like a new beginning. Like rebirth.

The nobles are happy. Of course they are. Spirits are high in the high district, Ace reports (he takes a job there only a few days after the Hunt even though it's obvious that he doesn't want to).By Thursday, things seem to be looking up in the grey district but there's already been a murder in the high district – apparently a human tried to press charges for the murder of a Fae that they knew, and now they're dead and the case has gone flat. The news outlets don't dwell on the case. It's a blemish that most people at the top would prefer to ignore.

On thursday night, four days after the end of the hunt, Ace is meant to have a job but Sabo convinces him to stay at home, just this once. It's been a long, long few days. All of them are exhausted. Ace is cheerful but it's obvious that he's worn out and Sabo practically wrestles him onto the couch. He ends up with his head in Sabo's lap, and Luffy ends up sitting on the floor with his head between Sabo's knees. The trio say 'fuck it' and get to eating their remaining reserves and drinking, jugs and jugs of mercifully clean water, into the night.

"Alright," Sabo says at one point, "Ace."

"Yeah?"

"Would you rather… have one eye, or two noses?"

"Two noses. No brainer."

Sabo snorts. "How the hell is that a no brainer?"

Shrugging, Ace shuffles a little to situate his wings beneath him. "Better to have two of something than only one, right?"

"But, like, it would look so nuts. So bizarre. Your nose is so freakishly big anyway, how would you fit another on there?"

"Oi!" Ace crosses his arms. "My nose is not big."

"It's massive," Luffy tags on, stifling laughter. "And all straight and pointy and stuff, too."

"How  _could_  you," Ace says in mock-hurt. "I could have a complex about my nose."

"You need an entire complex for your nose?" asks Sabo. "Wow, I didn't know it was  _that_  big."

Luffy bursts out laughing. "Sabo wins!"

"What, do you want me to just go around holding my big scary nose all day so your precious eyes don't have to see it?" Ace jokes.

"Oh, I don't know, Ace. I mean, that's a lot of nose to hold."

"Fuck off!"

"Sorry, Ace, are your feelings hurt?"

"You're such an asshole."

"Well," Sabo snickers, "You got the problem right on the nose there, Ace."

Luffy is laughing so hard that his eyes are watering. Ace moves like he's going to tackle Sabo, wrestle him into the couch, but he pauses when his eyes land on his still injured hand and he seems to decide against it.

"I hate you," Ace settles on saying. He stands and moves towards the door, as if he's going to leave, even though they all know that he's going to come right back. "You two suck."

"Smell you later!" Sabo chortles. He and Luffy high-five.

* * *

When Marco arrives at the bar on friday evening, for the first time he isn't alone.

The man tagging along is young, maybe five years older than Sabo - in his early or mid twenties. He's Fae, unlike Marco, with deep red wings and red hair. He glowers over his pint and doesn't seem happy with Marco, not in the slightest.

"This is Shanks, yoi," Marco says impatiently. "He's visiting for a while."

"Hey." Sabo's too tired to initiate much conversation. "Bit of a bad time to visit, with the Hunt and all."

"I heard," Shanks grumbles, glancing at Marco.

"How did the Hunt go for you, yoi?" Marco asks Sabo. "You live out on the Stacks, right?"

"Not anymore, no. I moved in with two close friends earlier in the year," Sabo explains. "Two Fae. We live in the grey district, all three of us."

"And you're doing alright, yoi?"

"Definitely. I mean, aside from living with two of the most reckless, insane people I've ever known." Sabo leans against the counter, laughing. "But we're getting by, yeah. I'm happy to be with them."

"That's good." Marco gestures to Shanks. "Actually, my...friend here is looking for somebody. Somebody he thinks might be in the city."

"I'm listening."

"My godson… left our home in the wilds, years back." Shanks puts down his glass. "He's pretty distinctive. Black hair, brown eyes, one wing - he had one of his amputated when he was a kid."

Sabo goes very, very still.

He's used to not letting anything show on his face, but he can't stop the stiffening of his form. Marco obviously picks up on it.

"His name's Luffy."

Sabo keeps his face carefully passive even though his heart is pounding, hard. "Luffy? I think I've heard the name. Though I can't really remember where…"

"You've got no idea? No idea at all?"

Shaking his head, Sabo turns away, pretending to feel through his pockets for something or other. "No, sorry. I'll ask around - I'm sure somebody's got to know something."

"Thanks." Shanks smiles at him and that cheeky grin is uncomfortably familiar. Luffy's  _godfather_. Sabo can hardly believe it. "I'll be back next week, hopefully."

"If we haven't kicked you out by then," Marco mutters.

"Ah, shuddup, I know you won't."

Sabo glances at the clock. "My shift's about to end. But I'll try to ask around, I promise."

It's a lie, of course. Sabo has all of the answers Marco wants already. But he's got some questions of his own that he needs answered, and he needs to get home to get them answered.

 _It's one thing after another after another,_ Sabo thinks privately. Ace and Luffy really did shake up just about everything about his life.

Waving goodbye to Marco and Shanks, Sabo exits through the back door and runs, all the way to the grey district and back home.

* * *

Ace wanders home slowly. Blackbeard is just as unbearable as always, and Ace needs some time to clear his head. Sure, the man is paying him at least, but it's not very much and Ace is dreading having to go home and reveal the two stale mac rations he's earned from a day of labour. He knows what's going to happen already - Sabo won't accept it the way Ace wants things, so they'll share and Sabo will make up something about feeling sick so Ace eats more, and Luffy will get a ration to himself but even after it his stomach won't stop rumbling.

The Hunt might be over, but everyday life is still tough.

Ace is a few blocks from home when he hears the footsteps. They're running, hard and fast from up the street behind him, and he almost doesn't look up. With a twinge of curiosity, however, Ace raises his head slightly and looks over his shoulder...and suddenly startles and stops in his tracks. Sabo's hair obscures most of his face in shadows but Ace recognises him well, just from the lilt in his gait and the tenderness in the way he holds his right hand.

"Sabo?" Ace calls. "Wait, Sabo, why are you running?"

The blonde stumbles to a halt, on the other side of the street, and they meet in the middle. Sabo looks out of breath, and his face is grim. "We've gotta get home, now."

"What? Why?"

"There's a guy with Marco," Sabo explains. Ace's blood freezes in his veins. "A guy looking for Luffy. He said he's his godfather."

"Wait- he- what?!"

"Let's get inside to talk about this," Sabo mutters. "C'mon."

The apartment is empty - Luffy isn't home yet. Ace struggles to get out of his coat (his wings have puffed up in the cold and the slits in the back aren't large enough) so Sabo helps him and they enter the kitchen together. Ace flicks on the light. The walls are just as grimy as always, it smells just as bad, but Sabo relaxes automatically just from the feeling of being here.

Ace flops into a chair and Sabo copies the action. "Alright. Whole story," Ace instructs.

"You know Marco comes to the bar every friday?" Sabo sighs. "Well, today he had a friend with him. A young guy - like, twenty-something young - called Shanks. And Marco introduced us and then said Shanks is… looking for somebody. That's why he's in the area. He's looking for a kid called Luffy, with one wing. His godson."

"You're sure that's what he said?"

"I wouldn't mess up when it comes to something like this," Sabo confirms. "He's Luffy's godfather."

Ace visibly clenches his jaw. "Damnitt. You know how the kid feels about his life before the city, he's… they broke all ties with him. Did the guy mention anything else? About where he came from? About why he's looking for him now, after all these years?"

"Nothing." Sabo thinks hard. "At least, I don't think so. He mentioned that Luffy had his wing amputated, of course, but we knew that already."

"Was he Fae?"

"Yep. Fullbred, too, like you. Wings almost as large as yours," Sabo elaborates. "No human blood in him."

"I would have guessed as much." Ace rubs his eyes. "From what I know, Luffy's old family were pretty much as extreme as you can get. Fae elitists. They kicked Luffy out, I guess… because he 'wasn't Fae enough'."

Sabo wants to say that he finds it hard to believe that people like that exist, but… he doesn't. Ace doesn't seem surprised. There's a lot of hate in the world. "I'm guessing they don't live near many humans, then?"

"Nah - out in the wilds. When humans can't hate you, at least not directly… I guess you start hating the other side." Ace groans a little. "I hate the world sometimes. I mean, what the hell did Luffy do to deserve it?! It wasn't his fault there was something wrong with his wing! None of it was his fault!"

"I know it wasn't." Sabo snorts. "Welcome to righteous anger club. I've been here a long time."

"Yeah, well, you're the goddamn founder."

A little sadly, Ace sighs, leaning back in his chair. There's silent for a minute. It's so cold outside that frost is already spreading along the window pane. November is going to end soon. December is a tough time - Christmas often gets pushed to the wayside in favour of staying alive in the bitter cold.

"When do you reckon he's going to get in?" Sabo asks.

As if on queue, there's the sound of somebody fumbling with the lock and then the front door opens. Luffy calls from the hallway, "I'm home!"

"Come in here," Ace says, still sounding kind of sad. "We have to talk."

"Guys?" Luffy stumbles in, pulling on a sweatshirt. It's too large for him and his wing fits snugly inside of it. "What's going on?"

"There was… a guy," Sabo starts. "At the bar. He was looking for you."

Luffy grabs the final seat, unconcerned. "If he wants to fight me then I'm up for it-"

"That's not what he wants."

Luffy falls silent.

"His name… Luffy, do you know a guy called Shanks?"

Luffy freezes in his seat. "What?"

"Shanks," Sabo repeats, hardly daring to breathe. "Your godfather."

"Shanks is here?" Luffy asks, almost seeming to be in a daze.

"He's looking for you. He was at the bar - Luffy, are you okay?"

"I'm…" A shudder runs through his form. "Shanks is here?"

"Yes. He is."

Ace swipes a hand through the air in front of Luffy's face. "Luffy? You still with us?"

"I…" All at once, Luffy seems to return to reality.

And, in a dramatic twist Sabo couldn't have foreseen, a genuine, sunny grin spreads across his face.

"Shanks is here. Shanks is here!" Luffy jumps up out of his seat and yells it to the room at large, "Shanks is alive!"

"What does that… what?!" Ace asks, sounding just as confused as Sabo feels.

"Don't you get it?! Shanks is  _alive_! He's here! He's looking for me! Don't you understand?!"

"No," says Ace truthfully. "Mind explaining?"

"I don't have time!" Luffy is abruptly frantic. "I gotta go out and find him! Shanks is out there, I can see him again, he still cares-"

"You can't," Sabo puts in. Luffy's face falls. "I mean, you can't yet. He's probably back out in the wilds with Marco. But you can come to work with me next friday - so long as you're quiet - and see him then…?"

Luffy whoops, throwing his hands in the air, his every inch glowing with excitement. "Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!"

"Would you mind explaining now?" Ace puts in. "I mean, I'm glad you're happy, but… answers, maybe?"

"Yeah, alright, okay!" Luffy slips back down into his seat with a sigh, grin still on his face. "Shanks is my godfather!"

"We knew that - but why did you two seperate? Why would he be looking for you? Why…" Ace trails off. "Can't you just tell us everything? The whole story?"

Luffy's shoulders abruptly fall. His grin fades a little. Ace knows that he's said something risky.

"I guess… I guess." Luffy shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "It's just been a long time."

"We both know how it feels," Sabo says suddenly. "To leave your home behind. Ace and I can both relate. Please, just… tell us. Anything, everything you need to tell us. We won't see you any differently."

"I know you won't!" Luffy pulls at a loose thread on his sweatshirt. "It's just hard. And it sucks. And it was a really long time ago."

"Take your time, kid," Ace says quietly. "Just tell us."

Luffy takes a deep breath and starts to talk.


	20. Snip, Snip

 

* * *

Luffy holds his breath, puffing out his chest, trying very hard not to move. He can feel her stare on his back. The hall is utterly silent, and  _ her _ every footstep echoes up to the high ceiling loudly, making him want to flinch. He balls his fists at his sides, staring ahead. She’s a few feet away. He knows that she’s staring at him. Even with everybody else lined up in the hall,  _ he’s _ her target.

This happens every morning. As much as the Charlotte’s pretend to be a family, they act more like a military base than anything. Luffy hates it. Lining up every morning, being picked on by Ma, being  _ scared _ . He has no idea why she hates him so much. She just  _ does _ .

Ma strides past him, further down the line. There are four lines altogether, sorted by age, and Shanks - just hanging onto the end of his teens - is in the line next to Luffy's. He shoots Luffy a comforting look that looks more scared than reassuring, and Luffy tries to smile back, but it feels tight and forced on his face. He hardly dares to breathe, afraid of stepping a toe out of line. Afraid of catching her attention. 

Ma reaches the front of the hall and stands still for a moment, watching them all. She's a large woman in stature, imposing, and strong enough that she could probably break Luffy in half. The whole hall seems to hold its breath. Nobody wants to move. Luffy tries desperately to keep his wings from twitching. 

The silence stretches before finally, Ma says, “Disassemble.”

Immediately, all four lines dissolve. The tension drains from Luffy - every part of him relaxes in an instant. Then, suddenly, a hand grabs his wrist and Shanks is hauling him across the hall, holding onto him very tightly. 

Luffy lets himself be pulled along without protest, trying to keep up with the older boy. He trusts Shanks, perhaps more than anybody else in this place. Shanks pulls him past the other residents of Whole-Cake Manor, and past Ma’s big chair, and up the marble staircase and deeper into the manor. Luffy doesn’t say a word. It’s dangerous to say pretty much anything in a place like this, where there are eyes everywhere. Luffy tucks his wings very close to his back and follows Shanks, holding the older boy’s hand tight.

Eventually, they reach Shanks’ room. It’s small, little more than a cupboard, and Shanks locks the door behind them just to make sure nobody can get in. It’s tucked away into an obscure corner of the huge building, far from most of the other bedrooms, and it’s Luffy’s favourite place in the whole world because Shanks’ room means  _ safety _ . It means being able to say whatever they want with no fear. 

Shanks grins and flops back onto his bed, and Luffy throws himself down beside him, kicking his legs in the air. Their wings are almost exactly the same shade of red. 

“How are you, squirt?” Shanks teases easily. 

“I’m okay- hey! I’m not a squirt!”

“Sure, squirt.”

“Stop it!” 

Shanks chuckles, but he doesn’t look completely at ease. His face is tight - he seems beyond his years for just a moment, and he looks Luffy hard in the eye. “Really, though, kid, are you okay? You seemed scared at the meeting this morning.”

Luffy pouts. “I wasn’t scared. I’m never scared!”

“Okay, _ never-scared _ , even if I did believe you, I would still worry.” Shanks flicks his forehead. “She didn’t call you out this time, at least, ain’t that a plus?”

“I guess…” Luffy stares at the ceiling for a while. “Shanks? Can I ask you something?”

“You just did. But sure, shoot.”

“Why does Ma hate me so much? Did I do something wrong?”

Shanks sits up in a rush. “No, of course not, you didn’t do anything wrong-”

“Then why?”

He winces. “It’s… kinda complicated. But it’s not your fault. It’s definitely not your fault, okay? She just… doesn’t like you. She just doesn’t.”

“But  _ why? _ ”

“Because.”

“Because why?!”

“Because I said so and I’m older and I’m right.”

“But  _ why- _ ”

Shanks sighs. “Fine, fine! I give up! I’ll tell you, you lil’ twerp.”

Luffy cheers, wrapping his own wings around himself. It’s cold on this side of the house. 

Shanks takes a deep breath. “Okay, okay. Basically, very, very long-story-short… your dad used to be one of us. ‘Used to’ bein’ the key phrase.”

“Wait, I’ve got a dad?”

“Yep. A really, really cool one.”

Luffy pummels the pillow with his small fists. “Tell me about him!”

“His name was Dragon,” Shanks recalls almost fondly. “He was like a mentor to me. A really cool guy. But he… didn’t like Ma. At all. I was a kid when you were born - little tiny thing with little tiny wings - and he made me your godfather, and refused to declare you Ma’s grandson. So she got angry and eventually there was an… argument, I guess you could say.”

“Argument?”

Shanks shudders. “It sucked. They were screaming at each other for hours and Dragon was…  _ really  _ angry. And eventually Ma just told him to leave - said that he was a traitor to the Fae and that she would rip out his heart unless he left and never came back. You were one. And he said…”

Shanks trails off and Luffy flails his arms impatiently. “What? What did he say?!”

“He said that you were his son and he refused to abandon you. He said that he would be back someday to take you back no matter what it took. And he told me…” Shanks sniffs. “He told me to take care of you.”

“And then he left?!”

“And then he left,” Shanks sighs. “And that was the last time anybody left. Nobody’s tried to go since. Luffy… Ma doesn’t like you because of who your father was. And I guess she’s still a little scared of him - at least,  _ I _ think she is. So it’s not your fault she’s so awful to you, okay? It’s not. It’s her stupid fault. And someday… someday, we’re gonna get out. We will. We will.” 

Luffy nods quietly, still holding Shanks’ larger hand. “Okay. I believe you. Hey, Shanks?”

“Yeah?”

“Why didn’t my dad like Ma?”

Shanks laughs. “He didn’t like this whole place, I guess. He isn’t like everybody here. He believed that all people - human or Fae or otherwise - deserve life and equality. He wasn’t like Ma at all. I don’t even know why he was here in the first place, to be quite honest.”

“Wait, he even liked  _ hybrids?! _ ”

“I told you he was awesome.”

“Wow…!”

“I want to be just like him, someday,” Shanks sighs. 

“Me too. Well,” Luffy corrects in a sleepy voice, “I wanna be just like  _ you _ .”

Shanks looks down at him in slight surprise. “Seriously?”

“Of course! You’re awesome! It would be awesome to be just like Shanks!”

“Dweeb.” Shanks ruffles his hair roughly. “You’re the only person in the world who wants to be like  _ me _ . Always knew you were crazy.”

“Hey!”

“Whoa!” Shanks dodges under a sloppily thrown fist, laughing. “Is that the best you’ve got, kid?”

“Shuddup!” Luffy tries to elbow him in the stomach, with no success. “Someday, I’ll beat you up!” 

“Sure you will.”

“I will! I’ll be as strong as you someday!” 

Shanks sighs, face falling a little. “I’m not that strong, Luffy.”

Luffy sits back against the pillows, frowning. “What do you mean? Of course you are! You’re Shanks!”

“Yeah, well, that doesn’t make me strong. I’m pretty weak, actually.”

“What?”

“I mean… Dragon left. He was brave. But I haven’t yet. I’m still stuck in this stupid goddamn house, with that stupid woman, and…” he trails off. “I just wanna be free, but I can’t even leave this place.”

Luffy crosses his arms. “But… that doesn’t make you weak, right?”

“Of course it does.” 

“Well… well, I still want to be just like you!” the six-year old decides. “‘Cause Shanks is cool no matter what.”

“Sure, sure, whatever you say.” Shanks smiles a little, sitting up. “Alright, squirt, let’s get out of here. Lunch’s on soon.”

He shoves Luffy’s shoulder and the younger boy topples off the bed and onto the ground, laughing, but as his left wing hits the ground he lets out a little yelp and stills, hand reaching for the offending area. 

“Luffy?”

“I’m okay, I’m okay.” Luffy grabs his wing. “Ow!”

“Where does it hurt?”

“Right there - by the ridge,” Luffy says, pointing out the place that hurts. “It’s hurt a lot recently,” he frowns. 

“Maybe you should go do the med bay…”

“I’ll be okay!” Luffy stands up, hands on his hips, and the smile that comes to his face is wide and real and warm. “I’m gonna be strong, Shanks. Just like you. Just you wait.”

* * *

“What?!” Shanks is on his feet so fast that he stumbles. “What the hell?!”

“You heard me.” The smirk on Pudding’s face is very familiar. Shanks wants to punch her. “They’re cutting it off. Snip, snip. They’re not going to let him stay after that, trust me.”

“Shut up!” Shanks tries to get around her, but Pudding refuses to budge. “Let me past! I gotta see him! I gotta stop them!”

“Ma told me to stop you.”

“Fuck Ma!”

Pudding’s face melts into a cruel mask of surprise, as if she expected him to say that. “Insolent worm!”

“Shut up, Pudding, and get out of the way-”

“No.”

“I’ll  _ make _ you-”

Suddenly, a glint of silver has Shanks stumbling backwards with a yell. Pudding grins a slightly manic grin. The knife in her hands is from the kitchens - Shanks recognises it - and it has a wicked curve at the end, the tip sharpened to such an extent that a shiver runs over Shanks’ skin. He has no doubt that Pudding has no inhibitions. If she killed him, right here and now, she could call it self-defence and nobody would care. Nobody would miss him. Nobody except for Luffy. 

_ Luffy _ .

Shanks makes a break for it. It all happens to fast - one minute he’s lunging forwards, reaching for the door, and then there’s a terrible pain in his hand, right in the centre of his palm and then in the back of his hand and it’s so bad that Shanks’ whole consciousness seems to flicker on and off for a moment. He yells out through a tight throat and then he’s on his knees, blood trickling down his wrist. Then he’s pressed against the floor. Pudding presses her boot into his back. His hand hurts so much that he can't breathe. 

Shanks tries to push her off but the pain is so much that he can barely think straight and when he tries to use his hands to steady himself, it’s so bad that it feels as though somebody has set his very bones on fire. He grits his teeth, trying to fight through it, but the blood is flowing steadily and the pain isn't ending and his head feels very foggy all of a sudden, and he finds himself wondering just what happened again - why is he here, how did he get in so much pain, why is he fighting at all…?

Pudding’s laugh is faint, as though from far away. It occurs to Shanks that he might have banged his head on the floor. 

“Crybaby,” Pudding says. “Weak little maggot.” 

Her voice is sickly sweet. Shanks swallows hard, trying to clear his mind. But the darkness is welcoming and he can’t help but sink into it - the world goes grey and then white and the thousand knives in his skull fade and fade, until there’s abruptly nothing at all. 

* * *

Luffy comes to consciousness slowly. At first, everything is vague - he can feel nothing, hear nothing, and his eyes are closed. He doesn’t know how long he lies still, sensation slowly coming back to him. There’s a thick, throbbing pain in his back, near his left shoulder blade. He can feel smooth sheets on his skin, and a mattress beneath him. It's silent but somewhere, there’s a clock ticking.

Slowly, he opens his eyes. He's lying on a bed in the med bay. It’s dark outside of the window and the fluorescent lights are harsh and intrusive in his eyes. It smells like antiseptic. Shanks is sprawled out in a chair to the side of the bed, his hand wrapped in bandages, and there are dark shadows under his eyes. He looks really pale. Luffy tries to sit up but there’s suddenly a stabbing pain across his back, so intense that he stills and inhales sharply, trying not to move for fear of agitating the wound further. 

Shanks jolts awake. He looks disorientated for a moment, blinking blearily, and then his eyes land on Luffy and all life seems to come back to him. “Luffy! You’re awake! How’re you feelin’, kid?”

Luffy blinks. “I’m… alright, but, what happened? And what happened to your hand? And why does my shoulder hurt?”

Shanks’ face falls. “You don’t remember?”

“Nope, not at all. The last thing I remember is… going to the med bay, ‘cause my wing was hurting a lot. And then everything’s kinda fuzzy.”

“Uhh… fuck. It’s a long story.” Shanks puffs out his cheeks. “Uh…”

“What? What is it? Why are you upset?”

“You ask so many questions, Luffy, I… Look. You know your wing has been hurting a lot?”

“Yeah?”

“Luffy - and, don’t freak out,  _ please _ don’t freak out - they found something wrong. Really wrong. An abnormality in the joints. And they said that if they didn’t do something it would affect your spine, and it might paralyse you or stop you from walking or  _ kill _ you and…”

“And?” Luffy asks. “What did they do?”

“Luffy… look behind you,” Shanks whispers. 

The seven-year old turns to peer over his own shoulder, and it takes a second and then all of him just freezes up. All motion, all energy, is sucked out of the room. Shanks holds his breath. Luffy doesn’t move for a long time and then his shoulders slump, just like that, and he turns back around with very wide eyes. 

“They… they got rid of it…? It’s gone…?”

“Kid, I’m so goddamn sorry, I tried to stop them-”

“It’s gone-” 

And  _ there _ are the tears. Shanks knows Luffy - he knew they would come eventually. But it doesn’t make it any better. Shanks shifts to sit on the bed, pulling the younger into his arms roughly and combing through his hair with his fingers. Luffy cries so hard that his whole body is overtaken by it. His arms are shaking so much that he can barely get them around Shanks but when he does he clings tightly. 

“I’m so sorry,” Shanks says again. Luffy doesn’t answer, still crying, because all he’s ever known is the ‘greatness of the Fae’. All he’s ever had is a promise from Ma that pure Fae, people like them, are superior to all others. And while he never really believed it, now it feels as though he’s not a real Fae anymore and it feels  _ horrible  _ and he wants desperately for it to stop. And it hurts. It hurts so, so much.

Eventually, Luffy hiccups himself into silence as his sobs dry out. He pulls away and wipes his bloodshot eyes, and Shanks abruptly looks like he wants to cry too. 

“What happened to your hand?” Luffy asks quietly, after a moment. 

“Ah, about that… well I heard about the surgery too late, and they organised it all so quickly and Pudding was the one who told me about it. So I tried to get past her and she had gotten her hands on a knife again. I’m alright. We should be worrying about you, kiddo.”

Luffy reaches up to rub his left shoulder blade, wincing. “It’s gone,” he says again, as if he can’t process it. There are tears again now, lining his tired eyes. “Shanks, what am I gonna do?”

“I… I don’t know, Lu. I don’t know. But… it’s going to be okay.”

Luffy trusts Shanks. He loves Shanks more than anybody. 

But he absolutely doesn't believe him.

* * *

There’s shouting, for hours on end, and Luffy eventually ends up covering his ears just so he doesn't have to hear them gamble over his life. They’re right outside his bedroom door. Ma’s deep, booming voice is so loud that the whole family must be able to hear her. Shanks has been yelling so much that his voice his hoarse. Luffy’s room is small and hot and stuffy and his shoulder hurts - it hurts a  _ lot _ now that they’ve taken away the IV - and the bandages are too tight around his torso. All he wants to do is get out of here. All he wants to be is far, far away from here.

“At least let me go with him!” Shanks eventually pleads. “ _ Please! _ Let me be there for him, even if you won’t, you selfish-”

“If you finish that sentence I’ll go in there and-”

“Wait, no, please-”

Luffy whimpers, pulling the covers tighter over himself. Shanks isn’t going to win this. Luffy’s going to have to leave and Shanks is going to stay here and Luffy is going to be alone, completely alone, out there on his own with nobody to talk to and nobody to be with and no hope of survival…

“Why do you hate him so much? What did the kid ever do to you?!”

“You knew his father,  _ rat _ that he was-”

“Shut up, shut your fuckin’ mouth! Dragon wasn’t a rat! He was a better person than you’ll ever be - a braver person, a stronger one! Don’t speak badly of him!”

“Only a fool defends a dead man, stupid child.”

“He’s not dead!”

“You really think any Fae could survive out there? Outside of this manor? You’re delusional.”

“If you’re so sure that the outside means death, then why send a little kid out there?”

“Because that ‘little kid’ is no Fae, and he doesn’t deserve our protection anymore. And that’s the end of it, you idiotic boy-”

Luffy tries very hard to clench his jaw, so as not to cry. He can’t be weak. He wants to be just like Shanks. He desperately wants to be just like Shanks. He  _ has _ to be just like Shanks. 

The sound suddenly blurs around him- his vision wobbles at distorts with tears- Luffy’s crying- the shouting is getting louder and louder- it’s hot, everything hurts-

* * *

Luffy realises that he’s stopped speaking. Sabo and Ace are both very pale, wide-eyed, and they’re staring at him with something between trepidation and concern. For a moment, nobody speaks, and the only sound in the room is breathing. It’s raining outside. Ace’s fists are clenched so tightly that his knuckles are white.

“Lu? You alright?” Sabo asks quietly.

“Yeah… yeah. I’m okay. Sorry. Forgot what I was saying.”

“You were saying… they wanted to send you away. Shanks and Ma were arguing,” Ace says. His eyes are shadowed dangerously. “I want to punch something.”

Sabo offers his forearm and Ace pounds it so hard that even he winces. Sabo’s face contorts, but the blonde still manages to not make a sound, pulling his arm back and nursing it with his hand. Ace seems to realise the force he used and flushes, wings puffing up a little. 

“Shit, sorry!”

“It’s fine, I’m fine,” Sabo reassures, though he looks like he’s repressing a groan. “I’m good.”

Luffy laughs and the sound is surprisingly reassuring. “You guys are real dumb.”

“We know.” Sabo smiles. “And Ace, in most sincere terms, fuck you. And your freakish strength. And your freakish nose.”

“Nose jokes? Really? Loser.” Ace turns back to Luffy, smile falling from his face. “Look, Lu… I think we can all guess what happened then, right?”

Luffy nods, slumping a little in his seat. “They sent me to the city. Shanks wasn't allowed to come. And I wandered around for a while and then… I found Ace. And then you guys know everything else.”

Sabo nods. “Yeah.”

Ace snorts, reaching out to mess up Luffy’s hair. “God. We’re all fucking disasters. Three staple tragic backstories, the soppiest goddamn conversation in the world, and Sabo still hasn’t cried.”

Sabo chuckles. “Just wait ‘til I stub my toe.”

“So, you’re really gonna take me with you to work next Friday? You promise?!”

“Of course. As long as you promise to be sensible…”

“I’ll be sensible!” Luffy pumps his fist. “I’ll be the sensiblest! The sensibliest!” 

“Sensibliest? Lu, that’s not a word.”

“Luffy,” Ace interrupts. “I gotta ask… after everything… does it still hurt? Your shoulder?”

The atmosphere is abruptly somber again. Sabo glances at their youngest too, raising an eyebrow. Luffy thinks for a moment and then grins, shaking his head and saying, “Not really. Not anymore. I mean, I don’t like thinking about it sometimes. And I miss Shanks a lot. But my shoulder doesn’t hurt that much.”

“And… Are you okay?”

“What do you mean?”

Sabo winces. “I doubt you even told us the whole story, but… what happened was really fucked up. Are you okay now?”

“Well, yeah.” Luffy says it as though it should be obvious. “I’m fine. It happened and I just wanna forget that it happened. But I am okay!”

“Alright, alright, we believe you, Lu,” Sabo laughs. “And I’m glad you told us.”

“Me too,” Ace agrees. “Alright, Sabo, I want to check if I actually hurt your arm and Luffy - you look tired as shit, get some sleep, nerd.”

“I’m not tired!”

“Get in bed before you fall over.”

“Agh, fine. G’night, Sabo!”

Sabo smiles, watching Luffy leave for his room, and turns to Ace when the kid is out of the room. “Do you reckon he’s really okay?”

Ace hums in thought, poking the rapidly purpling area of skin. “You’ll live,” he tells Sabo. “And… I don’t know. I think so. He’s not the type to hide his hurt.”

He gives a pointed cough, Sabo flips him off, and they both laugh, releasing the tension of the long past few hours. “Yeah,” decides Sabo. “He’ll be alright.”

“I would come with you two, next Friday, but…”

“I get it. I know. And you don’t have to see Marco until you want to.”

“I’m just… still kinda scared. That they forgot me.” Ace struggles for a moment. “And I know that they didn’t - really, I do - but my brain is just… bein’ stupid.”

“I know the feeling.” Sabo takes back his arm. “Try to sleep. We can sort everything out in the morning, I promise.”

“Alright.” Ace stands up. “C’mon. It’s freezing. We’re taking the couch.”

 


	21. War

****_ “Have you heard?” _

_ “Word on the street says-” _

_ “Jesus Christ,  _ **_no way_ ** _!” _

_ “-What else do you know?” _

_ “Have you even met the guy? No way would he do something like that-” _

_ “-It’s true, I swear-” _

Ace blinks. “What did you just say?”

“Didn’t think it’d need repeatin’,” Blackbeard cackles. The grin on his face is like that of a snake, about to strike. “Trafalgar Law and the hearts have declared war on us.”

* * *

There’s news - the streets are alight with it. Law’s name is on every set of lips and Ace can’t seem to get away from it. It seems as though everybody he knows is trying to get in contact with him all at once; that is, everybody except Law himself.

_ Why would he do this? _

There’s something hot and heavy, a strange kind of anger, boiling inside of him. Ace knows better than anybody that Law wouldn’t be the type to do something this rash unless he had a good reason. Something must have happened. Blackbeard’s smug smile is enough to confirm it, and Ace can’t get out of the base fast enough, heart pounding. And he can say completely honestly that he has no idea what he’s going to do.

Sabo already knows, and he’s in the house by the time Ace gets there, brow furrowed with worry. 

“I heard the news - Nojiko told me. Everybody’s talking about it; what happened? Why did he-”

“I got no idea.” Ace checks his phone for the fourth time in the last minute. “There’s no news from Law. He’s not the type of guy to just do this for no reason, no matter how little he and Blackbeard get along.”

“What does this mean for you?” Typical Sabo - concerned for others over himself. 

“I don’t know. It doesn’t mean anything good,” Ace says grimly. “I can’t fight Law. I know his gang, I know  _ him _ . He’s hardly a friend, but we’ve looked out for one another for a long time. I can’t throw that away. I can’t betray him like that.”

“What about Blackbeard?”

“It’s not like I can betray him either - he’d  _ kill  _ me.” Ace runs a hand across his face. “This is a mess. Fuck.”

“Alright, let’s just try to stay calm. Can you think of any reason Law would have done this? And what does a war entail? Could it be a temporary thing - do you know that all the rumours are true?”

“They’re definitely true,” Ace confirms, “I got it from Blackbeard that this is really happening. And war… it means destruction. Of one or both of our gangs. Somebody’s going to die, one of the leaders, and then the war won’t end until everybody on the losing side is six feet under. I’ve done this before. It’s hardly fun.” He makes a noise of frustration. “What the hell is he thinking?!”

“Is this completely out of the blue?”

“Yeah, absolutely. I mean, the hearts and the Blackbeards have never  _ gotten along _ per se, and there’ve been spats, but  _ war _ … Blackbeard considers the hearts kinda small-fry, not worth his time, and the Law I know would never go as far as to declare war. He’s too smart. Blackbeard’ll crush the hearts in a second - his forces are too strong for them, and Law knows it.”

“So  _ why _ ?” Sabo shakes his hand through his hair. “Ugh. Alright. So this means a dilemma for you and in extension, me.”

“Why you?”

“Didn’t we promise to deal with shit together?”

“What about Luffy, then?”

“I doubt he particularly cares about the politics of the gang underworld, trust me,” Sabo snorts, still with his game-face on. “Alright. I’m guessing you’ve got radio silence from Law?”

“Yep. And trust me, I’ve tried pretty much everything.”

“We’re going to his base,” Sabo decides suddenly, standing. “Come on.”

“Wait, wait, wait, what?!” Ace doesn’t move to leave. “Hold up. We don’t even know where his base is - and why the hell do you want to come?”

“I know where it is. I used to go there all the time, remember?” 

Ace nods awkwardly. “Oh.Yeah.”

“Anyway, like I said - we’re dealing with this together. And... I know I’m going to have to face the guy eventually. Better sooner than later. Okay?”

“...Okay,” Ace agrees eventually. “But  _ please _ try not to attack the guy. We’re hardly friends, but he’s been there for me a hell of a lot.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll try. Come on, let’s go.”

Law’s base is on the very outskirts of the grey district, near the city limits. It lies in the shadow of the Stacks, a little terraced building with a scruffy, dried-out patch of grass in front of it. It looks unremarkable. Sabo knows it well and seeing it like this brings back a horrible feeling in his stomach, so overwhelming that it makes the backs of his eyes burn. The air smells faintly like smoke. The last time he was here…

Sabo shakes the memories out of his head, forcing them back as firmly as he can. There’s no use reliving it all now. It’s far too late for that - there’s too much pain there, too much bitterness. He has to leave it behind. 

Ace is peering at him, concerned. “You gonna be alright? I can take it from here, if you need me to…?”

“No.” Sabo swallows. “No, really, I’ll be alright. Let’s just get it over with. This is about you and Law, not me.”

“Alright,” Ace agrees, “But remember what you said. If it concerns me, it concerns you, too. We’re doing this together.”

Sabo smiles a little. “Alright. Let’s go.”

They pick their way through the overgrown little garden and Ace knocks - once, twice, three times. There’s no answer. The house is motionless and mostly silent, but Sabo thinks he can hear somebody moving inside - the occasion murmur of hushed conversation echoes from inside. His throat is very tight.

Ace tries knocking one more time before sighing in exasperation. “Hello? Anybody there?”

There’s no answer. Nothing moves. Sabo quashes the urge to run. 

“Hello? It’s Portgas - Ace Portgas. I come as a friend.” Ace pauses. “I’m not here on behalf of Blackbeard.”

Nothing. 

Finally, Sabo swallows and calls, “I’m here, too. It’s Sabo.”

There’s still no acknowledgement. They exchange looks and then Ace pulls his leg back as if he’s going to try to kick in the door. Just as he does, however, there are sudden footsteps right behind it and the handle twitches downwards, as if somebody is trying to decide whether to open it or not. There’s a tense silence. 

“...Why are you here?” asks a voice finally, shaking slightly. Sabo recognises it. Shachi.

“We heard about what you guys have done. What Law’s done. And it’s a bit of a dilemma,” Ace says shortly. “We’re friends. Can we come in?”

The handle twitches again. Then, slowly, it turns down and the door opens a crack. Half of Shachi’s face is visible and he meets Sabo’s eyes and his jaw goes slack with shock. Sabo tries to smile at him and doesn’t quite manage it. 

A moment slips by and then Shachi opens the door fully. It’s dark inside. Ace looks like he wants to say something but Shachi’s wide eyes are glued to Sabo. 

“Uh,” Sabo says eloquently, “Hi.”

“You’re alive… crap, you’re  _ here _ …!”

“Is that a bad thing?” Ace cuts in sharply.

“Ace, leave it,” Sabo says softly. Then, “Shachi… It’s been a while.”

“I... “ Shachi shakes his head. “Why are you here? I’m glad to see you alive, trust me, but this ain’t the best time…”

“We need to see Law,” Sabo says. “And see what happened to cause… all of this. The whole dilema.”

“He doesn’t exactly want visitors-”

Suddenly, a door opens at the end of the corridor and somebody Sabo knows very, very well comes through. There’s a little gasp and then Bepo is there, asking, “Sabo? Is that really you?! Sabo!”

“Maybe we should take this inside,” Ace says. “We can’t do this kinda thing in doorways.”

“...Alright. Fine. Come in.”

The second the door closes behind them, Sabo has two arms full of Bepo. The hybrid hugs him so tightly that he feels something in his back pop. Sabo pats his back helplessly, suffocating but not willing to complain and upset Bepo more. He meets Shachi’s eyes over the bear’s shoulder and Shachi says, “Fuck it,” and joins the hug too.

After a moment, Sabo pulls away, brushing a little fur off of his shoulders. “It’s good to see you too, Bepo.”

“Where have you been all this time?! And how are you? And-” Bepo gasps, “Please say you know it’s not our fault! We didn’t know the plan until afterwards and we didn’t-”

“Bepo, Bepo! It’s fine, I promise. I know.”

The polar bear ducks his head. “Sorry.”

“You haven’t changed a bit,” Sabo laughs. “I’m happy you guys are okay, really… but we’re here for a reason.”

Bepo and Shachi exchange looks. “Boss is…”

“He’s in the kitchen,” Shachi says firmly. “Look, we’ll let you talk to him, just… be careful. He ain’t doin’ so good right now.”

“Okay, got it,” Ace says dryly. “Lead the way.”

Outside the kitchen door, Shachi steps back. “I’m not going in there.”

“Why?”

“Boss is upset, but… he’s scary, too…”

Ace laughs a little, but Sabo’s frowning. “You call him ‘boss’ now…”

“A lot’s changed,” Bepo says. “We’re… different now. I guess.”

Sabo takes a deep breath, turning to the door, and with one last look at Ace, he pushes it open and the pair of them step inside, leaving Bepo and Shachi in the hall outside. 

For a moment, Sabo is overwhelmed by memories. This place is so familiar. The walls are painted with the same dullish teal and grey sunlight drips through the half-open blinds onto the kitchen table. There are pictures lined up on the windowsill. It looks like any normal kitchen but Sabo knows it so well that it hurts to see it, like this, after all this time. 

Then, he sees Law. 

The man is sitting at the kitchen table. He hasn’t looked up at them. There are still dark shadows under his eyes but they look somewhat more severe now. His eyes are visibly bloodshot. Ace curses under his breath at the sight of him. 

After a long, tense moment, Law looks up. He looks barely surprised to see them. His eyes flit from Ace to Sabo and back again and he says after a moment, in a raspy voice, “You’re here to ask why.”

“Yeah. I guess you could say that.”

Sabo stays silent, watching Law intently. There’s a pause and then Law says, “Why’s he here?”

“Sabo? Well, he knew where your base was-”

“-And I’m not going to hold a grudge forever,” Sabo finishes, surprising even himself. The other two stare at him. “If there’s something I can do to help one of my brothers I’ll do it, even if it does mean I have to see you.”

“...’Brothers’?”

“Yeah. Brothers.”

Law stares for a moment and there’s something very, very sad in the lines of his face, in the set of his jaw. Sabo’s curiosity intensifies tenfold. But all too soon Law looks away, snorting derisively. “Sit down, then. Go on. Ask your goddamn questions.”

Ace sits slowly, on the chair furthest from Law, and Sabo sits across from the man. From this close up, he can see that his hair is unwashed and his skin is paler than it should be and there are little red marks on his forehead like he’s been kneading a headache. 

“I guess…” Ace starts cautiously, “Why? Why did you do it? You’re not stupid, Trafalgar. I know you. You wouldn’t do something like this without a reason, so  _ why _ ?”

“Hasn’t  _ Blackbeard _ told you?” Law asks, bitter. “I’m sure he’s patting himself on the back right now. And you’d do anything to suck up to your  _ master _ , wouldn’t you?”

The aggression is unexpected, both by Ace and Sabo. “What…?”

“All these years all I’ve done is save your ass; all I’ve done is help keep you in that man’s good books. And-” His voice cracks. “I’m not doing it anymore. Not now. This is war and no matter what my reasons were to do this, you have to choose a side.”

“How about you tell us what’s going on first,” Ace suggests. It’s obvious that he’s getting a little angry now. “Because you know it’s not that simple, Law. You know it. I have to protect my own; my brothers’ lives are riding on me getting food on the table every night. I can’t just choose a side like that, I have to bear my family in mind-”

Something in Law seems to snap. “Family?” he whispers, throat scratchy. “You think you have the right to lecture me about  _ family _ ?”

“I-”

“Blackbeard is the reason my family’s  _ dead! _ ”

“Wait, wha-”

“You heard me!”

Ace shuts his mouth and for a second the room is silent. Law is breathing very hard. Sabo realises that his fists are clenched very, very tightly. 

_ “He's dead," he says, voice rising to a bellow. "He's dead! Because of you! BECAUSE ALL YOU CARED ABOUT WAS  _ **_YOURSELF_ ** _ - _ ”

Sabo wrenches himself back to the present roughly. Now’s no time to start thinking about that, not when he’s only just started to get away from it. He pushes the memory to the back of his mind and tries to focus, keeping his breathing steady as he looks at Law, whose bloodshot eyes are trained on Ace. 

“Last night,” Law says in a shaky voice, “Blackbeard sent one of his cronies to a boarding school across the city. Third floor. Girls’ dorm. The culprit was tall, in his teens. A Fae. Witnesses say he had very large wings.”

All of a sudden, in a rush of horror, Sabo understands. A boarding school. The girls’ dorm. The red rims of Law’s grey eyes. 

Lami. 

“I don’t know what you’re trying to imply,” Ace growls, “But I was home last night. With Sabo and Luffy. Wasn’t I, Sabo?”

“Yeah,” Sabo breathes absently, “But- Law… Lami...?”

A choked noise erupts from Law’s throat without his permission and his fist comes down hard on the tabletop. The knuckles are already split and bruised anyway. Ace flinches. 

“My sister’s dead. Because of  _ him _ . Because of Blackbeard.” Law is staring hard at the tabletop, avoiding their eyes, and something inside of Sabo aches. “They carved Blackbeard’s symbol into her neck. The police are saying that… that it was slow. Painful. She’s  _ dead _ -”

“God,” Ace murmurs, “Fuck.”

“It wasn’t Ace,” Sabo manages to say, though he’s still reeling. “He was home last night. With me. And he wouldn’t do something like that-”

“You don’t know the kinds of things the Blackbeards do everyday, then,” Law bites back harshly. “Your  _ brother _ is far, far from innocent.”

Sabo glances at Ace, who doesn’t meet his eyes. After a moment, he looks back at Law. “Look. I know it’s awful. I know Blackbeard is the worst and I want him dead as much as you do and I can't even imagine how it feels, but… there’s still time to take it all back. Go to Blackbeard, sort out a peace treaty before it’s too late-”

“No. No way.”

“But-”

“I said  _ no _ . I want him dead and I’m not going to stop until he’s six feet under. And if I die trying… it’s what I deserve for not protecting her when she needed it.”

“And you’re not gonna change your mind?”

“No.”

Ace leans back in his chair, rubbing his eyes frustratedly. “This is so fucked up.”

“Tell me about it.”

“I mean… what I don’t get is… why?”

Law scowls across the table.”I answered that one already, Portgas-”

“No, I mean, like, why would Blackbeard do… that? I know you and him don't get along that well but he’s got no reason to go out of his way to kill... to kill somebody important to you,” Ace settles on saying. “So why?”

“Ace, maybe this isn’t the best time for this-”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

Both Ace and Sabo look over at Law. “Isn’t what obvious?”

“He’s trying to get rid of his opposition.” Law rubs at his tired eyes. “Ugh. And he knew I would do this - or hoped I would, anyway.”

“Aren’t you just playing into his hands, then?”

“There’s not much else I can do,” Law grunts. “I’m not just going to carry on my life. For her sake… I’m at least going to try.”

“And is this what she would have wanted?”

Law looks away, and there’s a break in the conversation for a minute or so. Then, Ace says, “What were you saying just now? About trying to get rid of opposition?”

“It’s the perfect time for him. Just after the Hunt. Everybody’s weakened. And he’s taking the opportunity to knock off his enemies while he can. He’s already planning to meet up with Kidd and that group of lunatics - if there's an alliance there, then that’s one less enemy to consider. Word on the street says he’s planning on ambushing the Strawhats, though we don’t have much on that yet. Lami was just collateral to him, so long as he can get me to come out of the shadows and fight him. He’s expanding. Blackbeard’s on the move.”

Sabo tries to stay calm, tries to think rationally. “But even with all of that… Law, you know as well as I do that starting this war isn’t going to bring her back. All it’s going to do is kill Bepo and Shachi and Penguin and everybody you love, and then it’s going to kill you, too. And she’s not going to come back.”

“Trust me, I know. But I told you; I’m not letting this slide. If I don’t manage to kill him and I die, then I die. If I do manage, then so be it. But I’m going to try,” Law says, still looking at the table, jaw tight. “That’s it.”

Law looks up, finally, and meets Ace’s eyes. He hasn't made eye contact with Sabo once. 

“So I’ve made my decision - now, you have to make yours. What are you going to do? Because you know as well as I do that I’ve done a lot for you. I wouldn’t call us friends, but we’re allies, Portgas. And if you’re just going to let that go-”

“I’m not,” Ace interrupts. “I’m not going to let it go. You’ve done a lot for me. I’m not 

going to fight against you.”

“I can sense a ‘but’ coming.”

“Look, I can’t just betray Blackbeard. He would kill me. He would kill everybody I love and make me watch.” Ace's eyes flit sideways to Sabo for a moment. “I can’t let that happen. But… I’ll do what I can to help you. If he sends me after you or I have to fight you or… anything. I don’t care. I just know I’ll try to do what I can to keep you and your crew alive for as long as you can. But we’ve seen this before, Trafalgar. You know we have. And you know how this war is going to end.”

Law nods, simply, and for a moment, Sabo wants to yell. He keeps it in. Something deep inside of him is splitting with fever. 

“I know,” Law agrees. “It’s only a matter of time. But we’re going to fight on until then.”

Ace nods, simply, and a kind of understanding passes between him and Law that Sabo can’t even begin to understand. Then the freckled teen stands and Sabo follows. Law stays sitting, and he doesn't look up as they leave. Ace and Sabo walk down the hallway and to the door in silence, and they let themselves out and then it’s all over and they’re back it on the street. 

It’s dark outside now. Neither of them talks as they start the trek home. After that talk… something about the city feels a lot more dangerous. Sabo feels eyes on him from every direction. His and Ace’s arms brush and the places where they make contact burn harshly. Sabo keeps his eyes on the ground and tries not to think about Law or Lami or Ace or Blackbeard or war or anything at all. 

Something deep in Sabo’s gut tells him that soon, the city’s going to change for good. 

* * *

“Have you heard the news, sir?”

The man looks up. The room is dimly lit but he can make out the indistinct form of one his his newest recruits across the room, poking her head through the door. 

“As much of it as there is, yes,” he replies wearily. “The hearts, Eustass Kidd, the fiasco with the ambassador, and the murder last night involving Blackbeard. Yes, you could say I’ve heard the news.”

She laughs a little, sliding into the room. She’s still limping. “Busy times, especially after the Hunt.”

“Do we have an official death count?”

“No, sir, but Hack’s estimates are rarely wrong and he reckons it’s at least over nine hundred this year, if not more.”

“And how many of those are from the grey district?”

“Over half, sir.”

The man sighs. “So it’s very much similar to last year. Thank you for letting me know.”

She brightens up. “Anytime, boss! And also, Hack wanted me to tell you that we’ve picked up on something… slightly strange.”

“Elaborate?”

“You know, every week, we make sure to keep tabs on the Whitebeard guy? Marco?”

“The man who visits Outlook Sabo at his workplace, yes. I’m aware. What about him?”

“Well, this week… he came with somebody else. Another man. And we’ve searched and searched through our files on the Whitebeards and… we can’t seem to find anything that matches up with him. He’s definitely not a Whitebeard.”

“Did he leave the city with Marco?”

“Yes, sir.”

The man thinks for a moment. “Alright. Get me everything you can about the guy when you can, okay?”

“Got it, boss; though that might be a while.”

“I can wait. Dismissed.”

She bows out of the room, still smiling. She’s so happy nowadays. It’s good to see her up and about. 

Dragon sighs, glancing out of the window. The snow is going to come soon. This time of year ( _ long nights, little light, shadows at every turn _ ) always seems to remind him of what it was like back then. 

He has to go back eventually. He knows he does… 

But maybe not quite yet. 

_ Sorry, son. Duty calls. _

_ Wait a little longer. _

 


	22. I Died On A Friday

**** The air is alight with sparks, though nobody can see them. They’re the elephant in the room; the tension setting the city on fire doesn’t need to be named, because everybody - from the lowest of the grey district to the richest of the High district - knows that it’s there. Whispers rush through the streets, on the mouths of all, about the war and gangs and traitors and Kidd and the hearts and the murder of little Lami Trafalgar.

Luffy isn’t particularly concerned. Life has always been tough - bad news is pretty much all news. There have been wars before, he tells the worried Sabo, and we’ve been fine. We’ve survived. We’re doing fine, stop worrying, nothing’s going to happen and we’re going to keep on surviving happily ever after. 

Sabo absolutely doesn’t believe him - and, surprisingly, neither does Ace. Both of them have been through a lot, seen a lot, and it’s surprising that this little spat is the thing getting them het up. When Luffy asks them why they’re so worried about one stupid little gang war, Sabo looks sad and Ace mutters something about ‘Trafalgar’ and both of them are obviously uneager to go into it. Luffy leaves it because, like he said, he really isn’t that concerned. 

And for a while, he’s right. Life goes on. A new week starts and the days pass, and none of them die. Friday approaches fast. Ace carries on taking up jobs - little things, bringing in scraps of cash little and often, just to stay beneath the radar. Sabo carries on working until he can’t work anymore. Luffy carries on stealing all that he can get his hands on, with and without the crew alike. The war between Blackbeard and the hearts is barely a war yet - it’s a standoff, two parties waiting to strike - and until they do, life goes on. Luffy tries to focus on Friday, and the thought of seeing Shanks again makes his stomach curl with excitement. 

The crew are doing fine. Sure, some people like Nami are worried about the current state of affairs, but nothing has happened to them personally and Luffy intents to keep it that way. It’s just business as usual. Things like this happen all the time, right?

Right?

Thursday rolls around after what feels like an eternity. Just one more day. Luffy’s so excited that his chest is tight with it, and he asks Sabo every five seconds if he’s sure he can take him with him, is he definitely sure, it’s going to be fine, right? It’s still happening, right? Sabo sighs and eventually just stops answering altogether. 

Luffy’s in the middle of asking, as a matter of fact, when he gets the phone call. 

It’s thursday night. Ace isn’t home and the house feels too big when he’s not in it, somehow. Sabo makes a good pillow. They share the couch, Luffy on top, and Sabo’s now gotten to the point where he’s ignoring him completely again and it’s become something like a game with them, to see how long Sabo can pretend he’s not there. Tickling is a good tactic, though Sabo calls it a ‘rotten, dirty trick’. Luffy just laughs and persists. It’s good.

His phone vibrates in his pocket. Luffy sits up, squarely on the blonde’s chest, and presses the green button without checking the caller ID. “Hello?”

“Luffy.”

It’s Zoro. Background noise blares out through the tinny speakers and Luffy holds the phone slightly away from his ear reflexively. “What is it?”

“You need to get here. Now.” He’s panting. “Luffy, seriously, just get to the den. Bring your brothers. Bring  _ anybody _ .”

Luffy stumbles to his feet. Sabo is half-sitting now, raising an eyebrow. “Okay, I’ll be there in a sec - what’s happe-”

The line goes dead. 

Sabo’s on his feet now, too. “The den?” he asks, simply.

“Yeah. We gotta go, now, c’mon.”

“Should I call Ace?”

“We haven’t got time.” Luffy tugs on Sabo’s wrist. “Come  _ on _ !”

“Okay, okay!”

Outside, the night air is thin and crisp, and it gets caught in Luffy’s chest like ice cold barbed wire. Ash and ice coat the ground and he and Sabo run together, through the icy streets. The air smells like smoke. Foreboding rumbles in Luffy’s stomach. Something is burning. 

They turn a corner and Sabo skids to a halt, inhaling sharply. Luffy carries on running for a few seconds, unable to process what he’s seeing, and then all of a sudden his legs will no longer carry him. He skids to a stop and gapes. 

Fire. 

The den is completely aflame. Smoke billows from the windows and there are flames, so bright that they burn against the midnight blue sky, licking their way out of the windows as they consume the whole building. The noise is horrible - cracking and crumbling and yelling from the small, silhouetted figures that are gathered around the wreckage, trying and failing to douse the blaze. 

Luffy stumbles forwards in a daze, eyes stinging in the smoky air. The world is a blur of colour and motion. The den has been home for so long. It’s Luffy's favourite place in the whole world, aside from the apartment. It means family. It’s a refuge. It’s-

It’s burning. 

“He’s still up there!” somebody yells, voice echoing into the night. “Chopper’s still up there!”

Luffy’s legs start moving before he can tell them too but he’s barely begun to move when arms tear him backwards. Sabo’s thin but strong and he pulls Luffy to him, so tightly that Luffy's kicking legs come off the ground. “Luffy! No, you won’t be able to help!”

“Let me go! No!”

Suddenly, there’s another pair of arms there, helping to hold Luffy back. Sabo tenses up in alarm but then there’s a familiar voice; “Luffy, stop! Look, Zoro’s going to get him!”

How Ace got here, how he knew about this, Sabo has no idea. But there’s no time to question it now. Sabo shoots him a strained look over Luffy’s jerking head and together they manage to keep the kid from running off into the fire. He’s an angry little mass of flying elbows and yelling and screaming and Sabo’s quite sure that he’s burst an eardrum. 

One of Luffy's fists makes contact with his still broken hand and Sabo’s vision goes white with pain for a moment. He comes back to his senses with fire in his eyes, clutching his hand with a yell of pain on his lips. Luffy’s stopped struggling.

“Just let me go,” he tells Ace frantically, “I have to go! My crew! I have to go to them!”

“Okay, okay,” Ace eventually agrees, letting his brother go. “But don’t you dare go running off into the fire!”

Luffy doesn’t hear him. Ace is panting hard, obviously having run here, and Sabo takes long, deep breaths filled with smoke just to try to calm himself. The pain is close to unbearable. Ace seems to notice after a second and a hand lands on Sabo’s shoulder. “Are you alright?!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay. Luffy accidentally hit my hand. I’m fine - it doesn’t matter.” Sabo stares into the wreckage, still clutching at his hand. “What can we do to help?”

“Worry about yourself for a minute!” Ace grabs him by the wrist and feels gently along his palm, and up to his broken fingers. “Shit. I thought this had healed?”

“Apparently not- agh! Stop!” Sabo wrenches his hand away. “Ah, crap, that hurts-”

From across the street, where the fire is still burning strong (so strongly that Sabo can actually feel the heat penetrating his skin), Zoro’s voice calls out, “I’ve got him! He’s okay!”

There’s a ragged cheer from somewhere and then more sizzling, more crackling as people attempt to put out the fire. It’s doing little good. Sabo says, “Come on. We have to help.”

“But-”

“I’ll be fine!” Sabo calls over his shoulder, already running to grab one of the buckets of water lined up in the street. “Don’t worry about me!”

The fire rages on through the night. People from houses in the area bring water by the bucket - mostly to try to prevent the fire spreadying. The Strawhats look mortified, all with darkened eyes, and they huddle together in front of the wreckage, tending to wounds, mourning everything that they’ve lost. By 1AM, most of the flames are out and smoke has filled the air so thickly that everything looks a very, very dark grey. 

Ash is coated over Luffy’s pale face as he grabs Sabo by his uninjured hand and pulls him over to the group. Sabo wipes a little sweat from his brow. It’s been a long night. The strawhats look up as he approaches, still cluttered together in a little huddle on the ground. Some of them have visible burns on their skin, while others sport bandages like they’re a fashion trend. Ace follows, arms crossed. 

“It was Blackbeard?” Sabo asks, as he reaches the group.

There are a few solemn nods. The sniper, looking at the ground, doesn’t even react. They all look devastated. Broken. The little kid, Chopper, has bandages all up his arms and very bloodshot eyes, and it makes Sabo sad, to see him like this. To see any kid like this. 

“Yeah,” Zoro says eventually. “He knew where we were based, somehow. Sent one of his goons to do it. Luckily, it was pretty easy to get out… but we’ve lost pretty much everything that was in there.”

Luffy sniffs, tugging Sabo down to sit in the huddle. It feels like some kind of strange gathering, like something sacred. Sabo feels like he’s intruding but he doesn’t say anything, doesn’t protest, because above all else, Luffy needs him right now. He lets the kid lean on his shoulder, remembering in a horrible rush of anger and grief that he’s fifteen and he just watched his home burn. He’s fifteen, and his surrogate family have just been left with nothing. 

Wiping his nose, Luffy shifts a little closer, telling the group, “Don’t worry. You can trust Sabo. He’s really good.”

“‘Good’?” Nami repeats. 

“Yeah. He’s good.”

Unable to come up with a good reply, Sabo shifts to allow Ace to sit on his other side, thigh pressing against his. Nami stares at him, hard, eyes flitting between him and Ace. Then she looks away all of a sudden, hand still tightly wrapped around the blue-haired girl’s, and Sabo glances in the other direction as well, trying to pretend that nothing happened.

“What are you going to do?” Ace asks. “We would invite you to stay with us, but things are rough enough already over our end.”

“I don’t know.” Sanji lights a cigarette with slightly shaking fingers. “We’re going to try to stay at Vivi’s for a while, but there’s not much room. Some of us have places to stay outside of the gang, but most of us lived in the den. It’s only me, Luffy, Chopper and Zo-”

“Not us,” Zoro says quickly. “I doubt we’d be allowed back there.”

There’s a slightly awkward silence for a while. Sabo brushes the ash out of Luffy’s hair with his fingers, staring absentmindedly into the wreckage. It’s very late. His eyes are burning with smoke and fatigue. At some point, Vivi and Nami stand, still holding hands. “Come on,” Vivi says gently. “We should all get some sleep. We can deal with this in the morning.”

Sanji puts out his cigarette and trudges off up the road, muttering a solemn goodbye to his crew. The rest of the strawhats stand slowly, gathering their wits about them, supporting those of their group who can’t walk anymore. Chopper is asleep and Zoro carries him silently, obviously unwilling to speak. He nods to Sabo and Ace as he passes, as if to say thank you. Luffy stays at Sabo’s side as the broken group take the funeral march up the street and out of sight, watching their backs as they go. 

Eventually, the trio leave, trekking silently back to the apartment. Ace smells like sweat and fire. Luffy doesn’t speak as they walk, nor when they get into the apartment. He’s so covered in ash that he looks like a small, winged chimney sweep. He goes to bed without wishing Ace and Sabo goodnight, traipsing off to his room in silence, and Ace asks Sabo, “D’ya reckon he’ll be alright?”

“Probably,” Sabo replies. “It just… sucks. All this sucks.”

“Yeah, tell me about it… Come on. Let’s go to sleep.”

* * *

Fate doesn’t like Sabo.

He learned this at a young age. Luck doesn’t favour him and he doesn’t expect that to change anytime soon. He’s not like Luffy, who seems to somehow have the devil’s luck behind him at all times, or Ace, who doesn’t believe in stupid things like karma and fate. If he was being particularly morbid, he would say that a lot of the time, it feels like the world itself has it out for him. 

But it’s never been quite as bad as it is on Friday.

The day dawns harsh and windy. There’s a storm stirring up the ash in the sky, and gritty clumps of the grey matter pound the windows. Cold washes through the apartment like a curse, whipping around Sabo’s ankles, stirring the air into a harsh concoction of the residing smoke of last night and the freezing cold of the storm. Sabo and Ace are both willing to stay inside, barricade themselves in until the storm ends, but Luffy is eager to see his crew and he leaves early. The remaining pair do their best to keep out the cold as the sky outside gets gradually lighter. It does little good. 

At some point, after Luffy’s been gone for about an hour, Ace says absentmindedly, “You’re meeting with the Shanks guy today.”

“Yeah. Hopefully he’ll be able to cheer Luffy up, even if we can’t,” Sabo answers. The kitchen table is cold under his crossed arms. “Marco’s going to be there, too.”

“Mhm.”

There’s silence for a moment. “You know, Luffy probably won’t be able to keep his mouth shut about you,” Sabo says. “And Marco might… hear something.”

“That’s what I’ve been worrying about, yeah,” Ace replies. “And… I guess a part of me really wants to see Marco, but...I’m still scared. That he’s going to hate me.”

“But-”

“Yes, yes, I know I’m being stupid. I know. But… I’ve thought this way for years now, it’s hard to change. And everytime I try I can hear...I can hear that man. Back then, when they first captured me. Telling me that the Whitebeards hate me, and that they never want to see my miserable face again, and that they’d rather die than take me back with them-”

Ace coughs, cutting himself off and looking down at the floor. “Sorry. Zoned out for a second.”

The pair stay in silence for a minute, Sabo looking down at the ground with no idea how to reply. A long stretch of silence passes and then he asks, “Why don’t you come with us? I know it would be scary but… Marco doesn’t hate him. And if you saw him, he would tell you that.”

“And if he does hate me?” 

“Then I’ll protect you; Luffy’ll protect you. We won’t let anything happen to you.”

Ace chuckles. “I’m not worried about being hurt.”

“Then what are you worried about?”

Ace falls silent. Sabo blows on his freezing cold fingertips and sighs, breath condensing slightly in the cold air. Even inside the apartment, it’s cold as hell. There’s a constant ‘ra-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta’ of frozen ash hitting the kitchen window, like hailstones, and Sabo watches through the window as outside, birds zip through the dense sky, searching for shelter. 

Suddenly, outside, there’s an abrupt hail of knocking on the door. Somebody’s pounding hard on the wood and Sabo and Ace exchange glances. The sound is loud enough to stand out over the constant racket of the storm, and a chill of foreboding creeps over Sabo’s skin.  _ Somebody’s here. Luffy has a key, it’s not him. It’s a stranger. _

The knocking pauses for a second and then resumes, louder than before. Slowly, Ace slides out of his chair, reaching into his belt to grab his knife. He meets Sabo’s eyes and outside, the knocking continues, seeming to grow louder and louder with each passing second and each harsh knock. The wind howls. Sabo can see the tightening of Ace’s fist around his knife, and his heart tightens in tandem.

Slowly, Ace pads out of the room and down the corridor, on near silent feet. Sabo follows him like a shadow and by the time Ace reaches the door, the racket is eyewateringly loud.

With one final glance over his shoulder at Sabo, Ace tightens his shoulders, twists the key in the keyhole and throws the door open. 

For a moment, all Sabo can see is a blurred impression of a figure in the doorway, shrouded by the wind-slashed rain. Ace moves slightly backwards, back hitting Sabo as the figure shoulders their way into the room-

Luffy shakes water out of his hair, slamming the door behind him. He’s sopping wet, hair dripping, wing soaking and bedraggled. “It’s freezing!” he says, shrugging off his soaking wet coat. 

“Uh…?” Ace says.

Luffy seems to notice that the other two are still there. “Oh. Hey, Ace, Sabo! I forgot my key. You could’a opened the door a bit quicker, y’know.”

Sabo glances at Ace and bursts out laughing, earning a strange look from Luffy. “We’re idiots.”

“Everybody’s too tense.” Ace shakes his head roughly. “Ugh.”

Luffy looks at them curiously, then shrugs, traipsing into the living room and proceeding to bury himself in a pile of ratty cushions. Sabo and Ace follow him in, the latter pocketing his knife as he does, and Luffy mumbles into a cushion, “I miss the den.”

Sabo sits down across from him. “How are your friends doing?”

“Okay, I guess. They’ve found a place to stay in the Sabaody district, ‘cause Blackbeard knows where Vivi lives and they know they have to get outta there. They’re moving right now.”

“Is Chopper okay?” 

“Yeah, yeah, he’s alright.” Luffy shifts a little, curling up, still soaked. “Sanji’s told his family to screw themselves and left for good. He can’t go back. None of them have anywhere to go now. I just wanna be with them-”

“Luffy, no-”

“Ace.” Sabo shakes his head at him surreptitiously, before turning back to Luffy. “I know how you feel. It sucks. You just want to help them. But… the bigger the group, the more danger they’re in. And Ace is in a lot of danger right now, too, and we need you here. They’re your family, but… so are we. You can still be with them, but just let us carry on protecting you for now, okay?”

Luffy nods slightly, looking up at Sabo. His hair is plastered to his forehead with rainwater, and he looks utterly miserable, and outside, the sound of the earsplitting storm continues, muffled only by the thin walls of the apartment. 

Suddenly, the kid seems to remember something. “Oh yeah, Ace! Zoro had a message for you.” 

“What is it?”

“He told me…” Luffy screws up his face, trying to remember the exact words. “He told me to tell you to be careful.”

“Is that a threat?” Ace raises an eyebrow. 

“No, no, definitely not! He said it’s ‘information’. He said it’s important and that you gotta remember it, especially now.”

Ace and Sabo glance at one another. “Any idea what it could mean?”

Luffy shakes his head. “Nah. But Zoro wouldn’t say something like that if he didn’t have a reason to, y’know? We didn’t have that much time to talk, really… but maybe you should try to remember it. He had a reason to say it. I know he did.”

“Okay, okay…” Ace rubs his forehead. “The guy could try to be a little less cryptic. Things are confusing enough already.”

Suddenly, Sabo’s ears catch onto another sound and, against his will, that same deep-set instinct flares to life in his chest. Knocking, once again, on the door. Loud over the rain. Somebody pounding the door hard with their fist, hard enough that it sounds like it’s going to break. 

Ace and Luffy both fall silent. Ace doesn’t look as worried as before, laughing with Luffy about how scared he and Sabo were. Luffy and Ace both stand up together, moving towards the hallway. The world feels like it’s slowing down. Sabo tries to speak but his ears are ringing and his heart is pounding and his head is spinning violently. 

Luffy and Ace are in the hallway now. Sabo stumbles to his feet and follows them. He tries to tell them to stop, to wait, to check who it is first. For some reason, his instincts are screaming at him that he has to run, now, as fast as he can. 

Ace fiddles with the keys. Sabo staggers forwards and tries to grab them out of his hands but the hallway is suddenly very long and the key is in the lock, Ace is twisting it and throwing the door open, as he did with Luffy before, unafraid. 

For a second, there’s silence. Sabo’s eyes trail up the gargantuan figure in the doorway. Ace stumbles backwards with a yell and tries to close the door but it’s being held open by somebody. Multiple people. There’s a group out there, but Sabo has eyes only for the huge man in the centre.

**Blackbeard** strolls in, as if he owns the place. His every step makes Ace flinch back. Sabo tries to make his legs move, tries to force himself to run, but his body isn’t responding. Ace tries to push him backwards, tries to shove Luffy and Sabo behind himself, but Blackbeard swats the freckled teen aside like a pesky fly. Ace hits the wall hard, and when he slides down it, a red trail of blood follows the side of his head down the wall. 

Luffy stands firm in front of Sabo, throwing his arms out, as though his small, scrawny body can protect Sabo from any and all harm. A second passes. Nobody moves. Sabo can barely breathe. His body still isn’t working. 

Then, Blackbeard grins very widely and raises his fist. 

 


	23. The World Went Grey

The rain falls in sheets, roaring through the city, a storm from lands far away. Ash washes over the buildings, over the people huddled in doorways and on street corners. It clots in the gutters and the whole world is grey - the people and the buildings and the sky, covered in impenetrable iron grey. The storm rages on and thunder rumbles, too far away to be seen, a low pounding and cracking of war drums thrumming through the air.

The grey district is quiet. Figures clutch one another in alleyways, freezing and shivering and soaked in ash, and the few lights shining from odd windows are strange and out-of-place, letting out orangeish light. It glints on the water flooding through the gutters like liquid fire. One particular block is utterly silent, every window dark.

There's only one apartment with windows from which light shines.

* * *

Ace comes to consciousness slowly. His right ear is ringing sharply and the sound of it confuses his already muddled senses. He opens his eyes on reflex and his vision is blurred, and all sensation is muffled, as though he's seeing himself from one end of a very long tunnel. There are lights spinning and darting through his vision, fluorescent and painfully bright, and he realises vaguely that he's staring at the ground. He can feel a fuzzy pressure against his knees which tells him that he's kneeling.

Somebody's yelling. Ace wishes they would stop. His head is pounding and there's something wet and sticky on his cheek and he can feel his head lolling low, chin against his chest. He tries to raise it, tries to make sense of everything, but his body refuses to listen to him. The wet thing trickles down to his mouth. Ace tastes copper. He can feel something pulling his arms back behind him, clamping his wrists together hard enough to make them hurt a little. Somebody is holding him down. Ace's pulse speeds up in his ears.

The yelling becomes more distinct. The voice is familiar to Ace. It's screaming, panicked, scratching and cracking with every other word . They sound terrified. Ace wonders absently who the voice belongs to. The words they're saying are distant, muffled, as though they're being blared out of an old radio.

Suddenly, pain explodes across the side of Ace's face. The world rushes in like a tsunami and he reels backwards with a yelp. The yelling stops and the person yells, "Ace! Ace!"

Ace has a vague impression of somebody standing in front of him, and crooked teeth glint at him in the light. Somebody's crouching in front of him. They smell bad. They just slapped him. The whites of their eyes are the colour of sour milk.

Blackbeard stands up, the palm of his hand red, and Ace's cheek burns like fire. "About time you woke up," he cackles in a low voice, looking down at him.

On instinct, Ace tries to stand. The person holding him increases the force of his grip on Ace's wrists, and he's sure he can feel the bones creak. He barely moves an inch upwards, knees staying on the floor as he's pulled back by the arms.

Blackbeard laughs again. The sound is grating. Ace takes in the room, blinking into the light. They're in the living room. Luffy is kneeling beside him, in a similar position, and his eye is swelling, already looking discoloured. He must have been punched. He's being held back too and he's straining, looking past Ace at-

Sabo's curled up, back against the couch, clutching at his stomach. His face is tight with pain, and it's obvious that he's trying and failing to stand. Blackbeard seems very large standing over him. Sabo grimaces up at him, curling around the place where he must have been kicked or punched, and something inside Ace's chest shatters. A strange, terrible mixture of anger and terror rush through him.

"Now that you're all awake," Blackbeard starts with malice, "We gotta talk. You'd all best be good lil' daffodils and shuddup and listen."

Sabo pushes himself up a little. " _Daffodils_ ," he grits out, "How threatening. I'm terrified."

"Sabo, no…!"

"Oh really?" Blackbeard ignores Ace's plea. "You think I'm threatening?"

He grabs Sabo's collar and pulls him up, to his feet and off the ground. Sabo makes a tiny, choked noise and grabbles with the meaty hand holding him up, trying desperately to get free, feet scrambling to find purchase on the ground. Ace bites his lip so hard that he feels a painful indent in the inside of his mouth and Luffy yells out, struggling hard. Neither of them can get free.

Blackbeard looks Sabo in the eye for a second, tongue in cheek, looking somewhere between amused and vicious. Then he strikes. His fist sinks into Sabo's stomach and all the air seems to rush out of the teen. He curls in on himself, legs jerking outwards, eyes squeezing shut and shoulders hunching. "Agh…!"

Blackbeard lets him go and Sabo crumples to the floor, folding in on himself to protect his abdomen. Ace wants to yell, to break free from his restraints and kill Blackbeard right then and there. His eyes are stinging. He can still taste copper.

"As I was saying," Blackbeard continues airily, above the sound of Sabo's groans, "We need to talk. We need to talk about you, Ace."

Ace raises his chin. "Let my brothers go. Then we can talk."

"You're not in a position to be makin' deals, kid."

"Let them go, and I… I won't fight. You can do whatever you want. I won't fight."

Blackbeard lears. "You seriously think I still want you working for me? Ace, you're a traitor. A traitor to our race. A traitor to everything we're fighting for-"

"All you're fighting for is your own ego-"

Blackbeard jabs his toe sharply into Sabo's injured stomach and Ace's mouth shuts sharply as Sabo looks like he's holding back a howl.

"What was that, Ace?"

"Nothing." Ace lowers his head. "Nothing."

Blackbeard gestures behind Ace, to the man restraining him and the man holding Luffy back. "So now, boys, we've got a situation. I've got a dirty, worthless little traitor on my hands. And we can't have that. So, what do I do with the little rat?"

Sabo coughs, glaring even with his cheek pressed against the floor. "He's not a rat," he rasps. "You're the rat. You're the worthless one."

Blackbeard stabs the toe of his boot in harder and Sabo grits his teeth. Luffy pleads, "Stop! Just stop!"

Of course, Blackbeard ignores him. "You've always been a strange one, Ace. Always so jaded. Always so impersonal. But I knew that you've gotta have something to fight for, right? Surely there's some kind of emotion in there? So we started watching you. And for a while, nothing was off. You lived with a little brother. You worked. You slaved away and we had an agreement, and I wasn't too worried about you."

Blackbeard steps towards him. "But things changed. You let a kidnapping target get away. Soon, you and your brother started visiting a human boy who lived on the Stacks. He was becoming troublesome and I couldn't allow your views to change too much-"

"So you killed all those people," Ace whispers. "You tried to shoot him dead and when that didn't work, you killed hundreds."

Blackbeard laughs, and the sound is horrible and Ace physically cringes. "You were of value to me. I couldn't let any… bad influences change the way you thought. A strong, young Fae with an innate hatred of humans was just what I needed. You're useful. Or, rather, you were.

"But you went wrong, didn't you? You fucked up. The human boy started living with you. And you managed to hide it for a while, sure. You're smart." Blackbeard grins harshly. "But I'm smarter, Ace. I'll always be smarter. Because I'm at the top and you're at the bottom and I'm big and you're small and I'm right and you're wrong. And there's nothing you can do to change it. You got that, punk?"

Ace keeps his head down, forcing himself to stay silent, unwilling to cause Sabo more pain. "Yes, boss."

"What was that?"

A little louder. "Yes, boss. Now please…"

"Please what?" Blackbeard relishes in every word that comes out of his damned mouth, as though he's having the time of his life.

Ace grits his teeth. He hates this. "Please let my brothers go. You can kill me, or torture me, or anything, just… please. Please, please let them go."

"Hmmm. No."

Blackbeard leans down, broad back curving as he wrenches Sabo up like a rag doll again. Sabo gasps in a ragged breath, trying desperately to claw Blackbeard's fist from around his collar, but it's no use. He can't get free. He shoots Ace a look that's slightly desperate, face pale and taut, and Ace would rather somebody kick him in the head and knock him out than have to see that expression for a moment longer.

"You've been doing this for long enough, Ace," Blackbeard says, with relish in every word. "You know how this works. Gangs are vicious. Ours more than anybody else. I'm not just going to accept 'sorry' for the sins you've committed. Oh, no. You have to learn a lesson."

"Then teach me it. Just keep them out of it.  _Please._ "

This time, there isn't even a second of hesitation. Blackbeard backhands Sabo so hard that his head snaps to the side. There's a horrible 'crack' as his hand makes contact with skin. Sabo's hair flies across his face and he barely even reels, turning his head back after only a few seconds, blowing hair out of his face. He meets Blackbeard's gaze with eyes so full of fire that Ace shudders. There's blood around the corner of his mouth, a cut on his cheek. Blackbeard's wearing rings. A rush of protectiveness washes up in Ace but he can do nothing; he's helpless and worthless and he hates it.

The man holding Luffy back is having a hard time of it; the kid is struggling like an eel. Ace realises absently that he's pulling so hard against his restraints that his arms are burning. Blackbeard strikes again, this time balling his hand up into a fist. Sabo visibly tenses and the impact of the punch makes his whole body jolt. His head snaps backwards and there's blood, immediately, dripping from his nose over his lips and off his chin. Seemingly unable to help it, he groans loudly with pain, struggling to free himself.

"Stop!" Ace chokes out the words without meaning to let them escape. "Please stop! Please just take me!"

Sabo slumps slightly. "Ace, no," he croaks.

"How sweet," Blackbeard laughs, and then his hand is back up. An incoherent yell of protest escapes Ace, but it's no use. A punch to the mouth and Sabo's head drops down to his chest, and his face is screwed up as if he's trying to fight back tears and suddenly, all of that bravado is gone. He looks like what he is - a kid. A teenager, beaten and bloody and helpless.

Eyes stinging, Ace begs again, "Just let him go. We'll do anything.  _I'll_ do anything. Please."

"Well, that doesn't matter too much to me, but…" Blackbeard grabs Sabo's bruised chin in his fingers and forces it upwards, meeting his eyes. "There is one thing that this little twerp can do to get it to stop, if he wants to."

"Anything. Anything at all," Ace says, heart lifting. "Sabo, just listen to him."

"You have to…" Blackbeard seems to think for a moment. "Promise me something."

Sabo raises his head. The blood on his face glints in the light. His eyes are filled with fire and thunder rumbles outside, and if Ace didn't know better, he'd be sure that the thunder was coming from within Sabo himself. It feels as though there's lightning sparking to life inside of Sabo. Ace can see it in his bruised face.

"You have to promise me that you hate Ace Portgas. You have to tell him that he's the reason you're in all this pain. You have to tell him that you hate him, and that you're not his brother, and that you hope he dies. Then," Blackbeard says wickedly, "You can walk out of that door."

There's a horrible second of silence. Sabo's expression doesn't change. Luffy yells, after a moment, "Just do it! We won't mind!"

Still, Sabo stays quiet. He and Blackbeard seem locked in a battle of wills, staring into each other's' eyes hard. Ace can barely breathe.

Then, slowly, Sabo shakes his head.

"No. No way in hell. I have never left you too, and I'm never going to. And I'm not ever going to do what you want me to do." Sabo stares Blackbeard right in the eye, and the corner of his bloody lip quirks up. "Do your worst, you  _coward._ "

All of Blackbeard's laughter, all of his comfortable cockiness, is gone now. He raises Sabo a little higher and then, face contorted with anger, twists him and slams his head into the wall. Sabo yelps a little, kicking out again. Blackbeard hits again, losing a little momentum this time, but then he makes Sabo turn his head. The third impact with the wall is face first and there's a distinct 'crunch'. When Blackbeard pulls back, Sabo has gone boneless, and his nose is the most obviously broken nose Ace has ever seen and he looks in store for two black eyes.

Luffy's been yelling so much that his voice has gone hoarse. Ace's shoulders stab with pain with every movement and his knees dig into the ground. Blackbeard lifts Sabo up, this time by a hand around his throat, and Sabo opens his glassy eyes and looks down at him blankly. The fire is out. Sabo seems out of it, half in-half out of consciousness.

But even as beat up as he is, Sabo still manages to croak out, "That all you've got? I'm getting bored."

"One more word, kid." Blackbeard is hovering somewhere between angry and sadistic. "One more fucking word, I swear to god."

Sabo grins and spits out a little blood. "Daffodils."

**(art by[my amazing awesome lovely friend whom i love v much](http://yaboybokuto.tumblr.com/))**

* * *

It feels like it goes on for hours. After a while, Sabo loses count of the blows. His face feels like somebody has forced it into a vat of boiling hot oil; his every cell is on fire. It takes every ounce of concentration in him to keep from yelling, to keep from crying and begging and curling up into a ball on the ground. He's got to be strong. He's got to find some way out of this, no matter how impossible that may seem.

Blackbeard drops him. The ground is hard. The back of his head makes contact with the floor and the world above him spins wildly on its axis, and Ace and Luffy are yelling and crying and panicking. Sabo desperately wants to go to them.

But he can't stop now.

Blackbeard raises him again and Sabo spits a piece of jagged tooth in his face. It misses by an inch and the man swipes in retaliation, hitting Sabo across the face before dropping him again and aiming a kick at his stomach. On instinct, Sabo puts his hands out in front of him to stop the kick, and as the toe of Blackbeard's boot makes contact with his hand, his vision explodes into white.

And  _there_ it is. The scream tears from his throat, too loud, and Ace is yelling and Luffy is growling and the whole world disappears for a second. When it comes back, the first thing Sabo feels his pain and the first thing he sees is his own hand, twisted backwards at an unnatural angle on the ground.

There's horrible silence for a second. Then, hands on his shoulders and neck, making him flinch hard. Blackbeard manhandles him up into a sitting position, and grabs Sabo's injured hand by the wrist. Sabo is too dizzy and in too much pain to fight it. The man's meaty fingers fit easily all the way around his wrist, and Blackbeard chuckles darkly. "This is interesting."

"No, no,  _no_! Get away from him, you sick bastard!"

"Sabo!"

Sabo manages to slur out, through a mouthful of blood, "Coward."

Blackbeard ignores him. Slowly, with movements so precise that Sabo's heart feels like it's going to beat out of control in his chest, he pushes his index finger back slightly. Slowly but surely. A chill runs over Sabo's skin.

"Wait, please!" Ace.

"Stop it!" Luffy.

Blackbeard pushes it back just a little more. The joint clicks a little. It's gone from uncomfortable to painful, the strain on the bone almost too much to bear. Blackbeard puts a finger on Sabo's knuckle and pushes it inwards, bending his finger at an even more unnatural angle. Sabo braces himself for the pain, looking away. He meets Ace's eyes, silently begging for some kind of release. Ace looks like his heart is breaking a million times over. Luffy's eyes are wet and he's still yelling, even though his voice is so scratchy that it's barely audible.

 _Crack_.

The pain takes a moment to hit but when it does, it's terrible and Sabo's mouth opens in a silent scream. He feels his face contort. No sound comes out, though it feels as though he's screaming, as though the pain is so bad that he can't even comprehend it. It's hot and cold at the same time and something feels incredibly off in his hand, right at the root of his index finger. He can't make himself look. Ace makes a gagging sound.

Blackbeard asks, again, "Still not willing to say it?"

"Go to hell," Sabo hisses.

Blackbeard doesn't give Sabo any warning for the second finger. The pain explodes through his hand again and the backs of Sabo's eyes burn but he refuses to scream. He prays for unconsciousness, at the very least just to get away from the sounds of Ace and Luffy's distress.

The psychopathic man seems to have fun with Sabo's ring finger, pushing it back as far as it will go before letting it go, then pushing it back again. He seems to revel in Ace and Luffy's distress, and in the pain and anticipation in Sabo's face. Sabo wants to hit him but his body isn't obeying him. He hates himself for sitting here and letting this happen. Eventually, the joint gives in and the agony is so intense that his whole body jolts with it, teeth gritting together, shoulders curling.

"I'm gonna kill you," Ace grits out, grief finally giving way to anger. "You son of a bitch. I'm going to stab you in the neck."

Blackbeard completely ignores him, instead going for Sabo's thumb. By now, Sabo's vision is tunnelling, his head is spinning, his heart is throbbing. He prays further, to any deity that could possibly hear him, for unconsciousness. His whole hand is aflame. His thumb breaks impossibly slowly, with another sharp 'crunch', and Luffy looks like he's going to cry.

Something inside of Sabo breaks as Blackbeard goes for his final finger. The pressing starts, slowly. Blackbeard pushes down on his knuckle. The pain grows and grows and as it does, something new kindles in Sabo's chest. Ace's and Luffy's yells grow in harmony with the war drums beginning to pound in his chest.

Just as Sabo's last finger is on the cusp of breaking, he manages to force his body into action, and throws his foot upwards into Blackbeard's groin.

Everything is suddenly happening too fast.

Blackbeard collapses, clutching the injured area and rolling to the side, and Sabo stumbles to his feet. The lackey holding Luffy steps forwards to try to confront him and Sabo uses the very last traces of strength in him to draw back his fist and sock the guy right across the face, nailing him in the eye with his uninjured fist, The man topples, crumpling to the ground. Luffy is already on the guy holding Ace and Ace himself has broken free. His arms come around Sabo, half to comfort and half just to keep him standing. Sabo wants to cry very, very badly.

But still, he pulls away, letting Ace and Luffy support him between them. "C'mon," he manages to pant, "C'mon, we have to go, we have to go-"

Blackbeard is on his feet. Luffy runs to get the door open and Ace tries to support Sabo out of the room but Blackbeard is surprisingly quick. He's on his feet and Ace turns to face him but he dodges around him, with eyes only for Sabo. Something raw and instinctive rises in Sabo and he tries to get out of the way but his head is spinning, his eyes are watering. A huge hand worms its way around his already injured one and then the world goes white-

Sabo comes to a few seconds later. His ears are ringing. He's on the ground. His hand has been plunged into the sun itself. Blackbeard is on the ground. Ace is moving across his field of vision, massaging his knuckles. Sabo's afraid to look at his own hand.

"Sabo, Sabo- oh,  _jesus christ_ , oh my god-"

Ace grabs him by the shoulders, pulling Sabo upright, staring into his eyes. "Are you with me? Sabo?"

Luffy is there too. "What happened?!"

"Blackbeard - he grabbed him, he stepped on his hand, tried to crush it- oh my fuck. Fuck. Sabo-"

"I'll be okay." Sabo staggers upright. He can barely see straight, and can hardly breathe through the pain, but he forces himself onward. He still hasn't looked at his hand. When he turns around, Luffy gags a little. Sabo tries desperately not to let himself panic. "Come on. Come on, let's get out of here; quick, before he wakes up. Come on!"

Ace and Luffy both take either sides of him (Sabo doubts he could walk on his own if he tried) and Sabo puts an arm over either of their shoulders, leaning on them heavily. His injured right hand brushes up against Ace's shoulder and he wants to throw up with the intensity of the agony.

Slowly, supporting the one of their number who can barely walk, the trio stagger out into the night. Into freedom.

The pain is unbearable. But Sabo isn't alone. He'll survive.


	24. Blue

* * *

Luffy forces back the panic boiling inside of him. There's no time for it now. All he can do is carry on stumbling forwards, Sabo draped heavily over him, and try not to think about it. He tries desperately to force the images of the last hour out of his mind; Sabo bleeding, Blackbeard laughing, Ace crying. The dead look in Sabo's eyes as he took the beating. The mangled remains of his hand.

Ace is panting hard, bearing the brunt of Sabo's weight. The blonde himself is grey with pain as the trio stagger down the steps and into the street, and he asks in a tense voice, "Where now?"

"I don't know- fuck, shit, we can't-"

Ace is panicking. Luffy can hear it in his voice and the sound of it makes his blood race. Where can they go? Blackbeard and his cronies are going to come to at any second. They're going to bring hell down on the trio for escaping them and the worst thing about that, to Luffy, is the idea of seeing Sabo hurt anymore. All three of them are physically and emotionally exhausted, but Sabo is in by far the worst shape. Luffy knows he won't be able to survive much more. They have to get away from here, and quick.

Rain pours around them, and it's very very cold and Luffy's breath condenses in front of his face. The trio turn into an alleyway not far from the apartment and Sabo gasps out, "Stop, please, we have to stop. Oh god."

Ace lowers the blonde to the ground, leaning back against a wall. Sabo clutches his hand to his chest, still refusing to look at it. His eyes are swelling up and his face looks like one big bruise, and he meets Ace's eyes with that same, horrible pleading look. As though Ace could end his suffering if he wanted to.

Sabo swallows, forehead shining with sweat, and looks away. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be - it's not your fault- though… you could'a kept the screaming to a minimum, Sab. I think I burst an eardrum." Ace forces a laugh. His eyes are very wet.

Sabo grins weakly. It looks more like a grimace. "Sorry," he says again.

Luffy glances around, blood burning in his veins. "Where can we go? What can we do?!"

"I don't know...fuck." Ace swears when he's panicking, and such is becoming quickly obvious. "Okay. Okay. We gotta get out of the grey district - Luffy, do you know where the strawhats are?"

"No - they didn't say the address!"

Luffy reaches out like he wants to touch Sabo's shoulder and the blonde flinches back, looking up at Luffy with wide eyes. Hurt, Luffy pulls back. Sabo looks like a wounded animal; panicked and hurt and ready to flee. He looks up at Luffy as though he's afraid that  _he'll_ hurt him, too.

"What about Law?" Ace asks, obviously having not seen the interaction. "He would take us in, right?"

"Blackbeard knows where he is; that would be the first place he would look. It's obvious that we'd go there," Sabo grits out, tearing his eyes away from Luffy. "We have to find someplace he doesn't know. Some place he can't control."

"He can control the whole city!" Ace's voice cracks.

"Wait- wait, I got it!"

Luffy throws his arms out, and he would look gleeful if he had the energy to do so. Ace and Sabo both jolt upwards an Ace asks, "What is it?"

"It's Friday night!" Luffy gestures to the dark sky above, which is still pelting rain. "We can go to the pub! Shanks and Marco will be there!"

"Luffy… you little genius!" Ace takes a few deep breaths. "That's a good idea. A great idea. Alright. I know where the pub is - let's move it, before they start searching for us."

Sabo clambers to his feet, swaying a little, and he looks like he can't stay on his feet for much longer. Ace tries to manhandle him into a position where they can support him but eventually, he says, "Fuck it. Luffy, help me get him onto my back."

It obviously causes Sabo a lot of pain to even begin to clamber onto Ace's back, but he manages it, gritting his teeth. His injured hand hangs over Ace's shoulder pathetically. He slurs into Ace's ear, "Sorry if I bleed on you."

"I don't mind," Ace says hurriedly, "Don't say sorry. You don't have to be sorry."

Sabo nods and as carefully as he can, Ace starts to jog, down the alleyway and into the next street over. Every step forces a small noise of pain out of Sabo. Luffy grabs his uninjured hand and runs with them and Sabo accepts the contact, gripping back tightly.

The streets pass in a blur. Sabo looks dead. The pavement shines, the gutters clotted with ash and dust, and the grey district feels like it's full of eyes watching them. Luffy's blood screams with adrenaline. Ace doesn't falter, doesn't stop even as Sabo buries his face in the back of his neck and grits his teeth just to stay conscious. They're going to make to make it out alive. They have to.

When the pub finally, after what feels like a million years, comes into view, something inside of Luffy breaks open. Maybe it's the worry about Sabo, or the desperate need to see Shanks, but something forces him to start running. He passes Ace and Sabo, flies down the street, past the houses and over the pavement and to the door. He hesitates for a split second in front of it and then pushes the door open, stepping into the light of the interior.

For a second, Luffy searches desperately, eyes scanning the room for a flash of red hair or scarlet feathers. His eyes land on face after shocked face and he realises that he must look awful - pale and bruised and covered in Sabo's blood. But he can't bring himself to care. He has eyes only for the man sitting at the bar, back turned to him, with red hair and big, scarlet wings folded against his back. Luffy pushes his way through the tavern, stumbling over the uneven wooden floor, eyes riveted on Shanks.

The man sitting beside Shanks glances at Luffy, and then his mouth falls open and he nudges his companion hard in the ribs, pointing. Shanks turns and his face melts into shock. Luffy feels like his heart is going to burst out of his chest - his systems are on permanent overdrive, his eyes are burning.

Shanks stands. That's all it takes for Luffy to break down.

He flies into the man's arms, clinging on as tightly as he possibly can, feeling his body jolt as the tears come. Shanks is here.  _Shanks is here_. He can barely comprehend it. Shanks reciprocates the hug with force and his wings, still the exact same shade as Luffy's, come around him and hold him tight.

"I was so scared," Luffy manages to choke out. "And S-Sabo - and Blackbeard, and there was so much blood-"

"It's okay, it's okay; I promise you're okay." Shanks take a deep, shuddering breath. "What's happened?"

"Is Sabo alright, yoi?" the other man asks. Luffy realises that this must be Marco.

"He's- he's outside- come on, we have to go, we have to go now." Luffy pulls away and grabs Shanks' hand, tugging at him, trying to get him to move. "Come on!"

"Okay, okay!" Shanks seems to be studying Luffy hard, trying to take everything about him that has changed, but he breaks himself out of it. "Okay, let's go."

They trio shove their way back through the tavern and out into the street. At first, Luffy doesn't see them - then, there they are. Sabo is leaning back against the wall of the pub, head tipped back, and he looks so defeated, so hurt, that Luffy's chest aches anew. Ace is kneeling beside him, brushing back his hair, and he glances up as Luffy, Shanks and Marco approach. As expected, he blanches at the sight of Marco and immediately looks down, trying to hide his face in the shadows that moonlight can't reach.

Marco, however, only seems to care about Sabo. He kneels beside Ace and stares almost helplessly at the blonde, as though he has no idea where to start or what to do. Sabo smiles weakly up at him, but there's blood on his teeth and it ruins the image.

"Christ," Marco whispers. "What happened?"

"Blackbeard happened," Ace says roughly, not looking Marco in the eye and using short, clipped syllables. "He doesn't get along with us too well. Decided to take it out on my brother."

"Your  _brother_?"

"Yes," Ace says clearly, knowing that it's obvious that he has wings and Sabo does not, and he's dark and Sabo's pale and there are a million other differences. He doesn't care. They're brothers and Marco would be wise not to question it. "We've gotta get him medical attention. Please say you can-"

"We can help him, right, Marco?"

Marco seems to have been left no room to argue and he nods, slowly. "Alright. The jeep is parked up only a few blocks away - do you think he can make it, yoi?"

"I'm fine," rasps Sabo.

"No, you're not - don't listen to him, I can carry him." Ace still tries not to look at Marco. He can feel the man's gaze. "Look. We'll explain everything as soon as he's safe, okay? As soon as my brothers are safe, I'll do anything you want me to. But please just help them.

Shanks nods, pulling Luffy in again, as though he can't bear to lose contact with the kid for too long. "Alright. Okay. Come on, let's go."

This time, it's obvious that Sabo doesn't even have the energy to cling on in the case of a piggyback, so Ace carries him with one arm under his knees and one around his back. He's as painfully light as always. They move quickly, a sense of urgency on the air, and by the time the jeep comes into view, Ace is coming down from the adrenaline high. His veins feel like they're being flooded with ice. Sabo is cold in his arms. The jeep is familiar in a painful kind of way. Ace remembers seeing it, back at Wakeshead a million years ago.

Finally, they reach the jeep. Luffy clambers into the back seat and Ace follows, lying Sabo out across the seats so his head is in his lap. Fluorescent lights on the ceiling of the van flicker on. Shanks climbs into the passenger seat, and Marco swings up into the driver's seat. The engine rumbles to life and for a moment, nothing moves - Shanks and Marco have both twisted in their seats to stare at the trio.

Sabo grins dopily up at Ace and says, "We're safe."

"Not yet," Ace says, but he can't help smiling a little back. Even with all of the horror inside of him, even with all of the grief and the terror and the anxiety, they're hopefully going to be just fine. "But we will be. Soon."

"Who are you, yoi?" Marco asks.

Ace doesn't take his eyes from Sabo's face. "I can explain later."

"Or you could explain now."

"Or I could explain later, after you've taken care of my brother," Ace says sharply.

Marco falls silent, turning back towards the wheel. Shanks carries on looking at them. He makes eye contact with Luffy - or, rather, he tries to. Luffy's eyes, like Ace's, are riveted on Sabo. It's obvious that the trio are very close. It's hard to fake that kind of unabashed concern.

The car rumbles to life, starting slowly down the long road towards the city limits, and Luffy reaches out to gently poke Sabo's bruised cheek. "How're you feelin'?"

"I'll be alright." A disbelieving pair of looks. "No, really. It wasn't that bad."

"How hard is it to speak right now?"

Sabo rolls his eyes. "Very funny. It's not hard."

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

Sabo squints hard, bloodshot eyes narrowing, and it's all Ace needs to see. "Four…?" he says hesitantly, after a moment.

"Lucky guess."

Luffy leans across and rests his head on Ace's shoulder, mostly just to see Sabo's face better. "Your hand looks bad."

Sabo grimaces. "How bad?"

"Like,  _bad_ bad. Really bad."

Sabo grits his teeth as he tries and fails to raise his hand up to eye level. "It feels bad-bad."

"Wait, did Sabo Outlook just admit he's in pain? Pigs are flying," Ace deadpans.

"Fuck off."

"That's the Sabo I know and love."

Sabo opens his mouth to retort but the jeep suddenly goes over a bump in the road. His body jolts and he grunts with pain, tensing up, face paling abruptly. Ace can barely imagine how much his stomach and ribs must be hurting right now, and he prays for the n'th time that there's no permanent damage. Sabo doesn't deserve anymore hurt.

"Shit!"

Luffy tells Marco heatedly, "Be careful!"

"Alright, alright, yoi!"

Sabo assures them, "I'm okay. It was just a bump."

Some of Ace's resolve splinters. "Stop saying you're fine when you're obviously not!"

"What?" Sabo blinks.

"Stop making out like this is okay!" Ace swallows hard, eyes burning. "It's not okay. You're not okay. It's okay to not be okay. So stop saying that you are!"

Luffy nods solemnly. The car is filled with tense silence. "Ace is right."

There's an awkward silence for a while. Ace stares out of the window, watching the Wilds flash by. The last time he was out here… he doesn't want to think about it. But he knows the dangers that this place holds. He knows all too well that breaking down out here, being stranded, would mean almost certain death.

Suddenly, in the front seat, Marco says, "We're nearly in, yoi."

Ace blinks. It's a long journey from the city to Wakeshead. It must have been a while, but the time passed surprisingly quickly. He guesses that it's because now, time can never pass as slowly as it did when they were with Blackbeard. Everything has sped back up to a mile a minute.

Sabo scrunches his face up. "Ugh. I want to pass out."

"Wow, thanks for letting me know."

"Somebody's feeling snarky," Sabo retorts, still pale in the face. "Sarcasm definitely makes it all better."

Ace inhales and exhales deeply. "Phew. Sorry. Stress."

"It's fine, really." Sabo shifts a little to rest his cheek on Ace's leg. "I know how you feel. But it's gonna be fine. It's gonna go fine. There's nothing to worry about."

 _Except your hand_ , Ace thinks, but he doesn't say it out loud. He simply nods, feeling Luffy's light breathing against his neck and trying to keep himself calm. It's really happening. He's at Wakeshead. After all these years. He's come home.

_They're going to hate you. They're going to kill you. They think you're worthless. You're_ _**worthless-** _

Ace tries not to look at Marco, or out of the window, or anywhere except for Sabo's face. Marco says, "We're entering the dome, yoi."

Soon, everything's going to be blue.

And after meeting people like Sabo, Ace doesn't know how he feels about the blue anymore.

The jeep carries on, and with every jolt Sabo's face tightens but he doesn't say anything. They sit in silence, Shanks still occasionally glancing back at Luffy, as if just to prove that he's really there and he really does exist. Eventually, Marco says, "We're going to be at the hall soon. We'll get you and your brothers medical care and some rest, but in the morning, we're going to need answers."

Blue eyes meet Ace's in the rear-view mirror and the freckled teen looks away, desperate not to make eye contact. "Okay," he says quietly. "In the morning."

After only a few more minutes, the jeep pulls in in front of the hall. Ace can't make himself look. He tries not to look at the clear skies or the pristine hall or anything at all as he climbs out of the car and shifts Sabo into his arms, ignoring the blonde's protests. It's obvious that he can't walk - hell, he can barely even move. Ace isn't letting him hurt himself more.

The hall looms over them. Shanks and Luffy walk together, close to one another's sides, but Luffy keeps glancing over his shoulder at Ace and Sabo, as though he doesn't want to stray too far from them. Marco strides ahead at the front, and as he throws the large front doors of Wakeshead hall open, light floods out into the moonlight-drenched night.

'Now or never', Sabo mouths to Ace.

Setting his jaw, Ace nods. "Okay. Okay, let's get you somewhere safe."

Luffy darts back as they approach the door, leaving Shanks to enter with Marco. He tells Ace, fiercely, "If they try anything, I'll fight them."

"Thanks, kid." Ace smiles a little. "But we've got bigger troubles. Let's just make sure Sabo doesn't die - we can worry about everything else later."

The morbid half-joke hits the spot. Luffy nods and together, the trio make for the door. Ace squares his shoulders and they step into the light, and he reenters the old home he hasn't been in in years and years.

Inside, it's mostly empty. Ace is thankful beyond words that everybody is asleep at this late hour. He couldn't handle a confrontation right now if he tried. Marco acts as though none of them have seen the house before (even though Ace most definitely has) as he leads them up the wide, marble staircase and to the med bay. Sabo is staring around, jaw slack, as though this place is the most lavish he's ever seen. Foreboding stirs in Ace's stomach.

His senses are still telling him that everything is going too fast. The walk to the med bay is too short, and he doesn't process it. Ace wonders if he's concussed. In the med bay, Marco forces him down onto a bed. Luffy sits beside him and Sabo lies on the bed beside theirs. Blood stains the sheets. The blonde tries and fails to smile.

There's a nurse in the room now. She sees Ace and does a double-take, and Marco says, audibly, "Not now. Just tend to them."

Now that he's sitting, with no Sabo to take care of and no car beneath him, Ace feels abruptly exhausted. Luffy asks if he's alright and he responds, immediately, "I'm fine. I'm okay."

Somebody waves a hand in front of his face. Marco's voice. "Hello? Are you alright?"

Ace's brain feels slow. Somebody says something about a concussion. Somewhere far away, there's a noise of pain that sounds like Sabo's. Ace tries to ask if he's okay but the world rushes in and everything goes a dullish shade of grey for a moment, and then there's nothing.

* * *

The freckled teen passes out not long after they reach the med bay. It's not unexpected. He looked very pale from the beginning, and there's blood in his hair. Marco sighs and shifts him onto another bed, watching as Luffy, too, closes his eyes. The trio must have been through a hell of a lot. They're all exhausted.

Shanks collapses into the chair beside Luffy's bed, staring at the kid with sad eyes. "I wasn't there. They've been through so much. I wasn't there to protect him."

"It wasn't your fault." Marco looks at Sabo, who is having his hand examined by two perplexed-looking nurses. "How's it looking, yoi?"

"Not good, Marco," Bay informs. "Kid's been through the mill. It's gonna be a long, long night."

"Should we sedate him?" one of the nurses asks.

Sabo stiffens. "I'm right here, you know."

Bay continues to ignore him. "I think it'll be necessary. Unless you want to operate while he's awake, that is."

"Wait,  _operate_?!"

Bay scowls. "Yes. Operate. What are you, deaf?"

Marco feels a little sorry for Sabo at this point. "Go easy on the kid. He's had a rough time of it. All of them have."

Bay's eyes slide from Marco to the freckled one and back again. Slowly, Marco shakes his head and she seems to take no for an answer, nodding and turning back to Sabo.

"Alright, listen up. Simply put, the bloodflow to your hand has been cut off. Most of your bones are in places they definitely shouldn't be, right?"

Sabo shifts uncomfortably. "Right."

"This doesn't spell good things for you. How long has it been since the injury?"

"An hour, maybe two."

Bay grimaces. "That decides it, then."

"Wait, decides what?  _Decides what?!_ " Sabo tries to scramble backwards, bruised face melting into shock, but he barely makes it a few inches without nearly keeling over with pain.

"Don't exert yourself," replies Bay, boredly. "Sedate him."

The nurses advance on him. Sabo curses up a storm as they force the needle into the little ridge of his inner elbow, but he obviously doesn't have the energy to fight them off. The second they inject him, he starts to droop. He stares Marco right in the eye even as he passes out, glaring into his very soul with a look of pure betrayal. Marco looks away.

Eventually, Sabo loses consciousness fully. Bay orders the nurses to wheel his gurney into the operating theatre and turns to Marco, shooting him a hard look. "I'm guessing you know what this means?"

"Of course, yoi."

"And you know that it's necessary?"

"Don't worry; I'm not planning on challenging your authority, yoi."

"Good." Bay raises her chin, reaching for a pair of pristine latex gloves and snapping them on. "And the second this is over, you're going to explain to me just who the hell the kid who looks just like Ace is, you understand me? You're going to explain everything."

"I will the second I have answers," Marco promises.

Bay turns on her heel. As she strides into the operating theatre, Marco hears her say to the nurses gathered inside, "Alright! This is standard; I know it's late, but I expect no screw-ups. Above the wrist, people, above the wrist. Let's get going!"


	25. Wakeshead

Luffy wakes slowly, to the sound of snoring. It's quiet. There's a clock ticking somewhere. He can feel warm, thick sheets on his skin. He wakes up warm for the first time in a very, very long time.

Slowly, he opens his eyes, and a rush of deja vu hits him. Shanks is asleep in a chair beside the bed. They're in the medical bay of Wakeshead. Shanks looks awful, with dark shadows under his eyes, and one of his hands is rested on the bed, close to Luffy's own. He's passed out, dead to the world, and Luffy is hit with a wave of affection and disbelief in equal measure as he looks at him. It's hard to even comprehend that he's there, real, right next to Luffy. Close enough to touch.

Glancing around, Luffy sits up. The room is filled with natural light; morning sunlight pours through large, bay windows lined up along one wall, catching on the pale blue curtains draping either side of them. Besides Shanks, there's nobody else in the room - that is, aside from Ace and Sabo, who are both asleep in pristine beds on either side of Luffy. Sabo's hooked up to an IV, pale, and his skin looks strangely grimy against the bright white sheets. Ace is curled up, facing away from Luffy. Neither of them are moving.

Luffy himself feels sore all over, he realises. It's like the strange feeling you get when you run for a very long time and every muscle in your body burns at once. His face in particular aches, as though he's been punched in the mouth, and one of his eyes feels watery and tender. He tries to sit up a little further and the movement shifts Shanks' resting hand.

The man jolts awake. He blinks for a few seconds, catching his bearings, and then his eyes slide over to Luffy. His face goes through a range of emotions in half a second; shock, disbelief, sadness, immense happiness. Luffy grins at him, though it feels strange on his bruised face, and Shanks asks, dumbly, "Luffy?"

"Shanks!"

Shanks stares for a moment. "This is real?"

"I think so…?"

"This is…" Shanks shakes his head roughly, as though to break himself out of some kind of dream. "You're actually here. Luffy, I found you! You're… you're here! You're alive!"

His voice is so filled with joy that Luffy can't keep the wide grin off his face. "Yeah! And you are, too! And you saved us!"

Shanks shifts upwards to sit on the bed and Luffy abruptly feels like it's all those years ago all over again. They clutch one another and Luffy feels six again, having just had his operation, mourning the loss of his wing. Only this time…there is no loss. Luffy isn't mourning. He hasn't lost anything. Ace is alive and Sabo is alive and Shanks is here and they're all going to be okay, and they're safe, and he hasn't been this happy in a very long time.

"You're alive," Shanks says again, as though he still can't believe it.

"Yeah. I am. And you're alive, too."

Shanks pulls away, swiping at his wet eyes. "I… tell me everything. From the beginning. Please - I have to know."

Luffy hesitates for a moment and then nods, watching as Shanks takes his seat again. "Okay. It's a… long story."

"We've got time. We've got all the time in the world."

Luffy takes a deep breath...and begins to talk.

He tells Shanks about being left alone in the city, and those first few days of terror and being sure that he was going to die over and over and over. He tries not to look at Shanks as he relives the confusion and the fear, and then the relief of finding Ace, somebody who would take care of him, somebody just as scared and abandoned and confused in this strange new world as he was.

"Ace is from Wakeshead," Luffy says, pointing over to his brother on the other bed. "And he hasn't told Marco yet. I mean, Ace'll tell him, we just… gotta give him time. It's really hard for him."

"I can imagine." Shanks shoots a glance over at Ace, whose huge wings almost hide him from view. "He looked after you? He took you in?"

"Yeah. I wouldn't have lived that long if he didn't," Luffy says truthfully. "I was really weak."

"What did you two do? Did you get off the streets? Did some kind of adult take care of you?"

"Nah," says Luffy flippantly. "But we were okay. Ace was ten but he was really strong and we ran around and stole and lived rough for a few years. It was kinda tough, but we were okay. And when Ace was fourteen, he got into gang work and we found a place to live in the grey district, and we've been there ever since."

"He was… he was fourteen? And he was associating with gangs?"

"Assoe-siat-ing?" Luffy wrinkles his nose. "He was in a gang, if that's what you mean. He did jobs for them."

"Which gang?"

"The asshole's one. Blackbeard's." Luffy sounds angry even at the mention of him. Shanks is wide-eyed. "But still, he paid Ace enough money and we could get by. Ace eventually got enough cash to get me into school but I didn't like it and the teachers said I had ADHD but Ace said I should stay there anyway, because he never got to go to school and he thinks it's really important. So I carried on, and he carried on working."

"You never got into gang work though, right?" Shanks' eyes flit between Luffy and Ace. "I don't think you get how bad it is, Luffy. For a kid to be in a gang. Especially the  _Blackbeards_  - Marco told me about them. They're vicious, Luffy."

Luffy laughs. "I know it's not good. It's not what you should have to do if you're a kid. But… you gotta, if you live in the grey district. Me and Ace aren't smart like Sabo - we don't know how to change the way things are. You haf'ta do something to survive, and we did it. We can't change the city, so we've just gotta do what it takes to live in it."

Shanks stares at him wordlessly for a moment and then says, quietly, "I should never have let them send you away. God, Luffy, I'm so sorry-"

"Don't be sorry; it wasn't your fault. And I'm not lying. I'm okay. I've got Ace and Sabo and you and I'm happy!"

Shanks looks like he's trying but failing to smile as he says, "What happened then? Did you stay in school?"

"Yeah. Met some really awesome people out in the other districts and we started a gang; the Strawhats. We're not the most wide-scale group but we had a base and we made a name for ourselves. And the rest of the gang looked after me and I looked after them, so we were pretty safe."

"What happened then?"

Luffy grimaces. "Then, we met Sabo. He was a human; used to live in the High District, so Ace took a job and tried to kidnap him. Long story short, it… didn't work. And they met one another and Sabo was really, really nice and Ace kinda didn't want to kidnap him so they separated."

"And then?"

"There was a…incident. I got stabbed. I was okay, really, but Sabo found me and took me to his level on the Stacks and patched me up, and he called Ace up as well. We spent a while with each other and Sabo is really, really awesome so we got along really well and Ace liked him and we became friends."

"...Stabbed," Shanks repeats.

"Yeah, that's what I said. Anyway, we were friends and Sabo's Stack got blown up so he moved in with us and I said we were brothers and Sabo agreed and Ace was stupid about it but he agreed too. We lived together for a while, until the Hunt-"

"Is that what happened to you? Were you okay? Did you guys get hurt?"

"Nah, we were fine. I mean, I got roughed up a bit and Sabo didn't eat enough but we were alright. The Hunt happens every year; it's not a big deal," Luffy says dismissively. "It only really went to hell when...well. The other day, Blackbeard declared war on a gang we know - the hearts. And a few days later, he burned down my gang's base. He's starting a bunch of fights. And we tried to keep out heads low but…"

"But what?"

"He found out about Sabo." Luffy's voice is quieter now, tenser, as though each word is more of a struggle. "And he hates humans. He came to the apartment last night and knocked Ace out and I tried to fight him but one of his men socked me in the eye and then held me back. And another one held Ace and Blackbeard started talking to Sabo and he kicked him, really hard, and-"

Luffy looks away, towards Sabo. Only the blonde's head and neck are visible; the rest of his body is obscured by blankets. It's almost as though somebody is trying to hide the damage. Luffy isn't even sure he wants to see the state of his hand. There's silence in the hospital room for a moment as Shanks waits with bated breath for Luffy to continue.

Eventually, he takes a deep breath and forced the words to keep coming. "He beat Sabo up. Real bad. And Sabo was bleeding and yelling and he's so stupid, it's all  _stupid_ , he just kept acting like it didn't hurt when it did and he wouldn't listen to Blackbeard so he just kept hitting him and hitting him and it didn't stop for ages. And Ace was crying and we couldn't do anything - we just had to sit there and watch as they nearly  _killed_ him. And- and-"

Shanks reaches out, tries to touch Luffy's arm, and he flinches away sharply. There's tense silence for a moment. Then, Luffy suddenly shifts into action, scrambling to his feet and clambering across to Sabo, as though he can't get to him fast enough. Shanks says, "Wait!"

Luffy doesn't listen. He doesn't try to touch Sabo, simply hovering by the bedside for a long moment, staring down at him. It's almost as though he's afraid to touch him.

It hits Shanks in a rush how much seeing something like Luffy did can mess up a person.

He had to watch as one of those he cared about most in the entire world was  _torn apart_. He and Ace were helpless as a terrifying man like Blackbeard must have threatened them and hurt them and hurt somebody they loved. And now, as Luffy looks down at Sabo, Shanks can see that there's a glint of something unbearable in his eyes, as though he can almost hardly believe that Sabo is even alive at all.

"Luffy," he says. "He's going to be okay. The doctors said he's going to live."

"I…" Slowly, Luffy nods, turning back towards his own bed. He climbs under the covers slowly. He says, quietly, "Okay."

There's tense silence for a while. Shanks stares over at Sabo, trying to imagine what the kid must really be like for Luffy to love him so much. He used to live in the High District - Marco said that only the richest live there. Sabo's human, with thin, pale features, and slight bags under his eyes. He's all long limbs, lean in a way edging on unhealthy, in stark contrast to Ace and Luffy's stockier builds and darker complexions. Ace and Luffy and Sabo are as different as chalk and cheese.

Shanks considers telling Luffy about the operation and decides against it. They can breach the subject later. Instead he asks, gently, "You three escaped, then?"

"Yeah." Luffy wraps his wing around himself. "Yeah. Sabo kicked Blackbeard in the balls."

"...Wow."

"Yeah. It was awesome." Luffy smiles a tiny smile. "And then he socked the guy holding me and we ran, all the way to the pub, and then… I guess you know everything else. That's the story. That's everything that's happened since I've been here."

Shanks lets out a long breath. "I'm-"

"Don't say you're sorry." Luffy doesn't even look up. "It's been shitty but I met Ace and I met Sabo and I love them and if I had never left, I never would have known them. And that's all that matters. So stop saying you're sorry. I'm tired of people saying they're sorry."

Luffy looks up and meets Shanks eyes, and Shanks can't read the expression on his face but it's passionate and striking and true.

"I'm happy."

Shanks blinks. After a moment, he says hesitantly, "I guess I am, too. Now that I've found you, kid, at least."

And, surprisingly, Shanks finds that he's telling the truth.

* * *

Ace's eyes slip open. The first thing he sees is white light and for one bizarre moment, he's sure that he's died and gone to heaven. Or Hell. He squints into the light, trying to distinguish some kind of shape, and after a moment, the silhouette of a head swims into his vision. He blinks, confused, as a voice reaches the misty edges of his senses. This doesn't feel much like heaven.

"-ce? Ace? Can you hear me?"

In a jolt, Ace jerks awake, shooting up in bed and nearly colliding with Luffy, whose face is a few inches from his own. Ace blinks, trying to gather his bearings, and when he's sure that he knows which way is up, he lets his eyes land on Luffy.

"...You look like hell," is the first thing that comes to Ace's mind to say. It's true. Luffy is sporting a violently purple black eye and a pair of pyjamas that are obviously three or four times too big for him. They fall wide around his neck and over his wrists. Ace is so disorientated that it takes a few minutes for him to notice where they are.

"So do you!" Luffy replies cheerily.

"Where… where are we? What happened?"

"You don't remember?"

"The last thing I remember is…"

_Pain. Blackbeard. Blood. Bruises. Raw skin. Sabo. Yelling. Tears. Sabo. Hurt. Sabo. Sabo._

Ace physically reels a little, memories hitting him like a ten-tonne truck. They reached Wakeshead in the early hours of the morning and everything else is a blur. He glances around, suddenly panicked, asking, "Sabo?!"

"He's right over there. Don't worry, the doctor lady said he's going to be fine."

Ace glances over, to where Luffy is pointing. The only visible part of Sabo is his mop of blonde hair, and his lean form is very still under the blankets. Some small part of Ace is glad that he can't see the bruises from here.

"What was the worst of it? Did they have to operate at all?"

Luffy shrugs. "Shanks didn't say."

"Shanks… you talked to Shanks." Ace's head is spinning - too much is going on. "How was it? Are you alright? Did it go well?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good." Luffy grins, clambering onto the bed. "It went awesome!"

"I'm glad."

Ace closes his eyes, mind buzzing with information. Shanks and Luffy. Sabo. Marco. There's too much going on and too much has happened and his head burns with it. Luffy slips under the covers, seeing to sense that Ace is having trouble, and his warmth against Ace's side is somewhat grounding, like some kind of anchor. Ace takes a few deep breaths and says, "We actually lived. We actually made it out of there alive."

Luffy nods. "Yeah. We're all alive."

"We can't let that happen again," Ace says, chest tight. "We can't let him go through that again."  _I can't watch that happen again._

"I know." Luffy glares at the ceiling. "We won't. No matter what."

"I'm gonna kill Blackbeard. I'm gonna rip out his heart."

There are a few moments of silence in the infirmary. Ace glances around, chest aching with familiarity. He remembers this place, remembers the light, airy feeling of the room, can recall with perfect ease the sharp smell of antiseptic in the air. Nostalgia hits him in a wave and he can't push away the feeling of wrongness - the feeling that he shouldn't be here. After all of these years, he's back at Wakeshead.

_They hate you-_

"What are you thinking about?" Luffy asks.

Ace shakes himself out of fast descending thoughts. There's no use in getting into the same thought process he's been subject to for years, at least not right now. He can deal with the thoughts and the fear and the doubt when he's got less to think about.

"Nothing, really. Sabo. You. Marco."

"You mean pineapple dude? He was up here a while ago. Asked if you were awake. I told him no, and-" Luffy lowers his voice mischievously- "I locked the door when he left."

"You're a little shit," Ace tells him. "Thank you. At least that gives me time to think things over."

"Anytime!"

Luffy clambers out of Ace's bed and wanders over to Sabo, sitting down beside the blonde and poking at his cheek. "He's still asleep…"

"How's he lookin'?"

"Really pale… and he's got this big bruise, like, everywhere." Luffy gestures to the whole of his face. "Ow…"

"Sabo's tough. I'm sure he'll be okay." Ace finds that he's having a tough time convincing even himself. "Did they say when they think he's gonna wake up?"

"No. I hope it's soon…"

"Me too, kid. But it won't be long. He's strong."

There's a tense kind of grief on the air. What happened is weighing heavily on Ace, and he can feel the memories pressing and pressing against his mind, trying to force their way in. The previous night feels like it lasted a million years. Ace feels almost raw with it, as though the whole thing is rubbing at his brain with sandpaper. It hurts to even try to remember it at all.

"It's gonna be okay," he says.

Luffy doesn't answer, still staring down at Sabo, and that's answer enough.

* * *

The main hall is in uproar as Marco comes down the marble steps. Hundreds of his family are crammed into the wide space and many look up as he descends. The hoarde is clustered around a youngish woman, one of the nurses, but it appears as though she's told her story and now people are processing what it meant.

Marco reaches the bottom of the stairs, confused, and Thatch shoves his way through the crowd towards him. "Marco! There you are!"

"What's going on, yoi?"

"Bella just told us; we took in three people last night? From the city?!"

"Yes, yoi. I know one of the boys, and Shanks knows another. We couldn't leave them, now in the state they were in-"

"That's not what I mean!" Thatch grabs his shoulders. "She says one of them looked just like Ace! Is he the one you knew? Is Ace really back?!"

"Thatch, Thatch, wait!"

But Thatch obviously can't be calmed down; most likely, none of the crowd can. Voices reach Marco from everywhere, asking for answers, asking questions. It's very loud and eventually he tells himself,  _fuck it_.

Marco steps back up the stairs a few steps, then turns to look over the crowd and calls out, "QUIET!"

His voice echoes through the hall sharply. The room silences in an instant. Heads everywhere turn towards him, voice dying mid-sentence as people stop to listen to him

"Alright, listen up folks, yoi." Marco takes a deep breath. "It's true that we took in three boys from the city last night. One was injured badly. The other two weren't in great shape either, and the three were very close, so we took them all in. Two of the boys are called Sabo and Luffy."

"Shanks' godson?!" somebody in the crowd calls.

"The very same, yoi."

A murmur ripples through the gathered crowd. Somebody else shouts, "What was the third guy called?"

"We don't know his name yet, yoi - he refused to say."

"Could he be Ace?!"

"Yeah, is it him?!"

"Is Ace back?!"

"He's alive!"

Voices erupt through the crowd and Marco sighs, calling for silence again. Only this time, his voice makes no difference. The crowd are brewing with energy, excited and elated and curious, and he can't make himself heard.

Suddenly, from the very top of the wide staircase, another voice calls out, "Shut it!"

Silence falls slowly, but it falls. Heads turn everywhere and Marco looks up, surprised to see Shanks of all people standing over the stairs. After a few seconds, it's completely quiet. Every eye rests on Shanks.

"Alright. I'm going to be honest." Shanks takes a deep breath. "The guy up there, in the infirmary, is Ace Portgas. Your Ace, though he's changed his name since he knew you. He's the kid who you lost all those years ago. That's all there is to it."

A tremor runs through the hall like a seismic wave and it's obvious that the yelling is going to restart but Shanks carries on, unwilling to let himself be drowned out.

"So yes, your Ace is up there. But listen to me for a minute." He sighs. "The kids up there are all injured, all used to living out there in the city. Ace seems almost scared of you, according to one of his brothers. They've lived in depravity for years and even if they're here now, they still aren't exactly willing to trust as easily as you all might like. All I'm saying is that you gotta be careful, you have to try not to crowd them. They pretty much only trust one another, and it's going to stay that way for a while."

Marco's head spins. So the dark-skinned, freckled kid with blood on his face really was Ace. He can barely comprehend it, but at the same time, he isn't very shocked. Of course Ace would grow up to be a fighter, to be a protector like the teen up there is. As the volume picks up in the hall, people chattering and yelling and marvelling over the incomprehensible news, Shanks nods to Marco and turns away, disappearing deeper into the manor.

Ace is back.  _Ace is back._

Even with the elation soaring through him, Marco finds it hard to stay cheerful about the whole thing. Because Ace has changed. He's older, more wary, more scared. And he has a brother -  _brothers_. New people to care about, new people to protect. It feels as though Marco's already lost him, before he's even gotten him back properly.

But at the very least, Marco is going to try to get him back. After all these years, it's the least he can do.


	26. Shelter

Ace stares out of the window as the sun sets. Streaks of orange and crimson lace across the sky like a watercolour painting, flawless, beautiful. The sun is framed with laces of pale, wispy clouds that trace the distant horizon, and the wide. , beautiful grounds of Wakeshead hall stretch for miles around, gently lit by the golden-red hue of sunset. Of course, it's not really the sun. The sky isn't truly that beautiful. Not really.

Eventually, Ace feels so utterly uncomfortable with the view that he has to look away. Sunsets like this, clear skies and beautiful scenery, used to relax him. He used to be able to appreciate their raw beauty. But after seeing what's out there, after so many years and so much pain and so much grey, it's hard to look at something like this. The city feels a million miles away, and a million years ago. But it's certainly not out of sight, out of mind.

Luffy has given up on watching the view, too. It's been a whole day of waiting, and listening to nurses and Marco trying to convince them to open up, and Luffy telling them to fuck off, and Ace telling them the same but more viciously. Sabo still hasn't even woken, hasn't even stirred. Neither Ace nor Luffy has looked under the covers at his hand, but a horrible, tense feeling stirs in Ace's stomach every time he thinks about it. A part of him wants Sabo to stay asleep.

But a larger part of him is glad, of course, when the blonde starts to stir. Sabo shifts, groaning softly, eyes squeezed shut. Ace practically tumbles out of his seat in his hurry to get to him, and Luffy isn't very far behind him. They might be crowding him but neither of them cares. Luffy climbs up onto the bed and stares down at Sabo, shaking his shoulder slightly, and Ace winces at the swelling and the bruising and the grime. Sabo looks worse that he's ever seen him.

Sabo groans again, and then his face screws up tightly and he murmurs something. Luffy says, "Come on, Sabo, wake up. Wake up. C'mon."

Sabo murmurs something again, mumbling through lips crusted with blood, and Ace catches, "- _don't_ …-"

Luffy shakes him again and that's the trigger - Sabo lets out a strangled little yell and his eyes shoot open, body jolting as though he wants to sit up but he can't. Luffy backs off. For a moment, Sabo stares around wildly, obviously with no idea where he is, eyes darting sightlessly. Then his eyes land on Ace and he breathes, "Fuck."

"Sabo…?"

"Where are we? What happened?!"

"Sabo, I-"

"Where's Blackbeard?" Sabo's movements are jerky and uncoordinated as he tries to get out of the bed and stand, breathing hard, eyes wild. "Are you okay?!"

"Sabo, wait, please-"

The covers fall back from Sabo's hand. All three of them freeze in an instant.

Ace's breath catches in his throat. A surreal kind of shock washes over him, as though he's been drugged, as though what's in front of him must be some kind of illusion. Sabo makes a small, choked noise. Silence wells up in the air, close to overflowing. This can't be happening. It can't. Not now.

Sabo's hand, from the wrist down, simply isn't there.

Bandages are coiled around his wrist, white and pristine and trailing up to cup the stump where the skin should extend to his hand. There's something terrifyingly wrong about the image, about the place where there should be a wrist and a palm and fingers and instead...nothing. There's nothing. Sabo's hand is gone. It's hard to process, hard to look at, and Sabo looks like he's about to pass out he's gone so pale.

Ace's head is spinning. The damage must have really been horrific, if they had to amputate his whole hand. He'd known that it was bad, but not that horrendous, and his heart aches with the feeling of desperate hopelessness; the horrible feeling that comes with pleading for the ability to go back, to change things. Surely this is some kind of dream. Surely this isn't happening. Surely none of this has to happen.

The tears come, and the feeling gets suddenly ten times worse. Because the tears aren't Luffy's. They aren't even Ace's.

Sabo's crying.

It happens slowly. Ace watches with a morbid kind of horror as the blonde's lip trembles slightly. Sabo bites it between his teeth but his whole jaw is shaking now, and then his whole body as his shoulders curl inwards. He blinks furiously, staring at his wrist, clenching it tightly in his hand as though if he holds it with enough force, it will go back to normal. Slowly, painfully slowly, a tear trickles down the inside of his cheek and drips off his chin.

"No," Sabo murmurs. Then, louder, "No. No, no, no no no no. No _nonono_ -"

"Sabo-"

Sabo looks up, meeting Ace's eyes with a desperate, pleading kind of look, eyes bloodshot and wet and then the second tear falls, tracking a trail beside the first, and Ace breaks down. Sabo slumps back against the covers and Ace wants, desperately, to hold him but he doesn't want to hurt him and he's terrified that he's going to make it all worse and his vision is blurring, his eyes are stinging-

Luffy, as always, has no inhibitions. He throws his arms around Sabo's neck even as the blonde's knees curl up and his body shakes like a leaf. Sabo's still holding onto his wrist and it seems impossibly small without the hand, like a bone wrapped in bandages. His eyes meet Ace's over Luffy's shoulder, and there's patchy bruising around and under his eye, as though somebody has taken the blood in his veins and spilled it in little patches just under his skin. Tears wet Luffy's shoulder.

Ace's body moves in without his allowing it to. He ends up behind Sabo, one wing wrapped around him, clutching him hard. He tries not to touch the stump because he's afraid that the scream brewing inside of him will escape if he does. Afraid that it will all suddenly become real if he does. Sabo is shaking, heaving with sobs, utterly defeated. It's horrible to watch the hopeful one, the teen always so full of fire, like this. Ace can feel his pain as though it's his own and it seeps into the air, through the room, across his skin.

**(MORE ART BY[AMAZING AWESOME BRILLIANT FRIEND](http://yaboybokuto.tumblr.com/))**

The sobs don't stop for a long time.

* * *

Marco is coming up the corridor to check on them when the door finally opens and Ace steps out.

Marco stops in his tracks and looks at him properly for the first time, now that he knows that he really is Ace, taking in everything that's changed. Ace is tall. Not as tall as Sabo, and stockier, with more muscle - but not stocky enough that it hides the toll that living with not quite enough food has on the body. His wings are huge, bigger than Marco could have ever imagined they'd grow, and he's got a hard-jawed face and a long nose and he looks quietly livid. Even from here, Marco can take in for the first time the pale scars that dot his dark skin like freckles.

Ace turns to look at him and for a moment, they stare at one another from opposite ends of the corridor. Ace keeps his facial expression the same but Marco can sense that it's a tough feat.

"Are you alright, yoi?"

Ace takes a step towards him, closing the door to the med bay behind him. "I've got questions."

"So have we."

"My brother has lost his hand." Ace's voice is shaking.

The word 'brother' makes Marco flinch. Because out of all of the scenarios he's imagined for all these years, Marco's never even considered the possibility that Ace could get new brothers. That he could replace them. It hurts, more than he could have ever imagined, that Ace could have forgotten them.

"I trust our medics. You should, too. And our head doctor informed me that amputation was necessary-"

"Did you ask Sabo? Did you inform him?" Ace's voice is as cold as ice. "Did you even bother to get his goddamn  _consent_?"

"I-"

"Sabo just woke up, terrified, because it's the day after he went through shit that you can't even  _imagine_. And then he tries to stand up and finds that his hand just ain't there anymore. What do you think he does?" Ace answers the question for him. "He panics. Of course he does. Who wouldn't?!"

"But it was-"

"Shut up! He's in there, barely able to breathe, and my little brother is trying and failing to calm him down. He's scared. He's _terrified_. He's lost a goddamn hand and you didn't even bother to ask for his permission to take it - you didn't even bother telling him!"

Ace is obviously angry and obviously scared, and Marco tries to convince himself that the teen is only lashing out because he's been through a lot and he's stressed and he's not really that upset. At this rate, Ace looks like he wants to leave, which Marco prays won't happen anytime soon. Or ever. They just got him back. They can't lose him again.

Ace takes a deep breath. "Luffy is locking the door behind me when I go back in. No way in hell are we letting you near Sabo, you got that?"

Mistrust. Great. Marco tries to keep his tone even as he nods and says, "Okay, yoi. We can deal with that."

Ace turns back towards the door and Marco's heart falls into his stomach. Last chance. He has to say this now.

"Ace, yoi."

Ace freezes, hand hovering over the doorknob. Even his wings go still. For a moment, nothing moves. Marco can't see his face, can't gauge his expression, but he can make a few guesses as to what he's thinking.

Then, slowly, Ace turns to face him. His face is perfectly blank, but his fists are clenched and tension runs through him so thickly that it's as though he's being electrified. "That's not my name."

"Luffy told Shanks everything, yoi. We know about what happened. Shanks told me the whole story - you finding Luffy, being homeless-" (Ace flinches at the word) "-Being in a gang, and then what happened with Sabo. Ace-"

"I don't want to talk." Ace's voice is sharp and clipped, each syllable spoken as though he wants it to be his last. "About any of it. I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay, yoi. We don't need to. But-"

"They told me that you hated me. The people who kidnapped me."

Marco shuts his mouth. Silence reigns. Ace is staring at the ground, shoulders hunched, and tension builds in the corridor until it's hard to breathe through it. Marco is just about to break the silence when Ace goes on, still staring at the ground.

"They said that I was worthless. That you didn't care that they were hurting me, trying to sell me. They said that you guys were glad I was gone." Ace takes a deep, steadying breath. "And I guess after you hear something for so long, you start to believe it."

Marco's heart is breaking. "How long were you with them, yoi?"

"Not too long. Not long enough that I started to break, if that's what you mean. But when I did manage to get away I was young and scared and alone and… none of you were there. Nobody was in the city. Nobody was looking for me. I searched and searched and the police hadn't heard anything from you, not even a missing person's report. And I started to think that maybe you didn't care-"

"We did, yoi. We always cared. I swear we did," Marco gets out in a rush. "We never stopped looking. Ace, losing you damn near broke us. People threatened to leave, we all missed you to hell and back-"

"I know you did, I know, but-" Ace swallows. "But it's hard to adjust. It's hard to change what you've thought for eight years. I… I've got people I care about more than anything and I've missed you guys, I have, but it's been so long and so much pain and I can't… I can't just go back to being your brother. Not after all this time. I can't abandon the people I love just because I'm back in my childhood home-"

"Your  _home_ , Ace, yoi," Marco says, trying to find words. "This is your home. You're back home now, you don't ever need to go back-"

"But Luffy's got a life back there. My little brother wants to back at some point. And Sabo is scare as hell, and he's hurting and he's lost something that's fucking terrifying to lose. And if they want to leave, then I will, too."

"You're family, yoi."

Ace takes a step forwards, and another, and Marco steps forwards too. They meet in the middle of the hallway and Marco pulls Ace into a strong embrace, tension in his body releasing all at once. Ace doesn't hate him. Ace is here, alive, in his arms, clinging back tightly. They hold one another for a minute and Marco again marvels at how much he's grown. He can feel his ribs beneath his hands.

Eventually, Ace pulls away. Marco abruptly feels cold, but he steps back too, meeting Ace's eyes. They're just as sharply grey as they've always been, boring into Marco like they're x-raying him.

After a moment, Ace turns back towards the door and the moment is over. Marco backs off. Ace's frame is still rigid - he's still on guard. Marco wonders vaguely how hard it must be to drop your guard after living on the streets. Ace turns the handle nods at Marco, curtly, before stepping inside and closing the wooden door behind him. After a moment, the lock clicks.

Marco doesn't move for a while, listening to the faint footsteps inside making their way to the area where the beds are. He feels slightly shell-shocked, reeling like he's taken a blow to the head. Ace really is back. He's real. He's all grown up. But he's spent years in the city, fighting just to stay alive, and he's got a new family now; new brothers.

And Marco has no idea how he's supposed to feel right now.

* * *

Ace approaches the bed slowly, pocketing the key. Luffy glances up at him as he comes closer and Ace mouths, 'I spoke to him'. Luffy nods, glancing back down, and both of them look at Sabo. The blonde is still leaning back against the headboard, eyes closed. His skin is bloodied in patches and he seems particularly grimy as he lies back against the white sheets. Everything about him screams that he's not meant to be there. That he doesn't belong here.

Ace tries to ignore it, sitting down on the bed and shaking Sabo's shoulder gently. "Sab? You awake?"

"Sorry," Sabo says. He sounds slightly ashamed. "For freaking out like that. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have."

"You lost your hand," Luffy says, "I would've been freaked out too."

"Yeah. You gotta stop doing the thing where you blame yourself for stupid shit," Ace says. "Seriously."

"You have to, too," Sabo says lamely. His voice is scratchy. Then, "You spoke to Marco?"

"Yeah."

Sabo opens his eyes slightly. "How did it go?"

"Same as I'd expected. He talked about how this is my home and I should stay here and I'm family…"

"And what did you tell him?"

"I told him that you two are family to me, and that I care about them but a lot of stuff has happened and if you two want to leave, I'm leaving too. I also might'a chewed him out a bit about… about the operation," Ace settles on saying.

Sabo sighs. He looks unhealthily pale, with bloodshot eyes and a slightly tremor in his voice and in his frame. "You didn't have to do that."

"I wanted to. They should have told you. They should have at least asked for you permission or something-"

"If it was necessary, they had to do it, Ace. No matter how… unpleasant it was to realise." Sabo cups the stump again, as though he can still hardly believe it.

"I've never seen you so wrecked. It wasn't just 'unpleasant'," Ace fumes, before sighing. "Look, maybe yelling at him was just letting off steam. I don't know. But...what they did sucked. And it hurt you, waking up like that. And even if that hadn't happened, I had to tell him that we might not stay anyway."

"How'd he take it?"

"Not great. I guess he'd been happy. Thought now that I was back, things would go back to the way they were." Ace lies back against the covers, beside Sabo, and rubs his eyes tiredly.

"Do you want them to?" Luffy asks, flopping onto Ace's stomach, and for a moment in time, it feels as though they're back home, curled up together on the couch. Ace blinks, and it's over.

"I don't know. I can't imagine it - staying here, with people I barely remember, in a place so…"

"Fake?" Sabo suggests.

"Fake," Ace agrees. "And it's hard to go back to pretending that everything's fine when I've seen that it's not, it's really not. Everything's fucked up. And I can't just… forget about the city. Not now."

Ace's wings ruffle with agitation. They all lie in silence for a while. Sabo keeps playing with the bandages around his wrist, feeling around the stump as though it's new territory of his body that he been able to explore. Eventually, Ace grabs his inact hand - his left - and traps it between their bodies, so Sabo can't do it anymore.

"Sorry. It's just… hard to get used to," Sabo explains. "Hard to process."

"Don't be sorry. It's just-"

"Hey, wait!" Luffy says suddenly, sitting up. "We're matching! Look!"

"What?"

Luffy points to his left shoulder, where his missing wing should be. "I got my wing am-u-tated-"

"Amputated."

"-And you lost your hand, too! We're the same!" Luffy says proudly.

Ace winces, wondering if it's the best time to be making jokes about it, and glances at Sabo. The blonde stares at Luffy for a moment, blankly, before his lip quirks upwards slightly. His eyes seem suspiciously wet. "I guess… I guess we are. Thank you." He glances at Ace. "You, too. Thank you. For sticking around, for being my brother. Thank you for everything."

"Don't get emotional," Ace says dryly. "There's enough on my mind anyway. Come on, let's get some sleep."

Ace stands up, stretching, and moves to pull the curtains across the windows. Sabo watches from the bed as he flicks a lamp on in the corner, making the room feel warmer and cozier than it already is, and checks that the door is properly locked. Luffy shifts to lie on Sabo now. It hurts a little (a lot), with how much of Sabo feels like it's broken, but he doesn't complain. When he's done, Ace clambers into bed too.

There are six beds in the room altogether but even when there's no need to, all three of them share, simply because it's natural. The low light is comfortable and the room is just the right temperature and Sabo should feel comfortable, should feel safe, but he doesn't. There's a fever stirring beneath his skin, a kind of panic that he can't suppress, and now that everything is so still and quiet, he can't stop replaying everything that happened in his mind. Blackbeard's face flashes before his eyes every time he closes them.

"Stop thinking so hard," Luffy mumbles after a minute.

"I'm not."

"Yeah, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"No, you're thinking about Blackbeard," Luffy corrects him matter-of-factly.

"How do you know that?"

"Because I know you."

Ace buries his face in the pillow. "Quit arguing."

"No. Not until Sabo stops thinking."

Sabo snorts, turning over so his face is pressed against one of Ace's wings. "I'm fine, Lu. We're safe. Don't worry about me - we're far away from the city, at least for now, and we're gonna be fine."

Luffy sighs. "Okay…"

A few minutes of silence trickle by. Sabo tries to distract himself but it doesn't even come close to working. After a while, Luffy's breathing evens out, and Ace turns to look at Sabo in the semi-darkness. Sabo meets his eyes.

"What?"

"Nothing… nothing. I'm just trying to think about what to do next."

"Don't think too hard," Sabo murmurs quietly. "We can figure it all out in the morning."

"I know, I just… nevermind. Let's sleep," Ace says, looking away. After a moment he adds, "Oh, but, Sabo?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm never going to let that happen again. I'm never going to let myself be held back when somebody hurts you. I'm never going to let somebody do something like that again. Okay? Blackbeard can go screw himself."

"Alright, I believe you," Sabo agrees with a small laugh. "Go to sleep. We can deal with it all in the morning."

"Goodnight, Sabo."

"Night, Ace."

* * *

"Wait,  _what?!_ "

The whole room falls silent in an instant. Zoro stands, fists clenched, eyes wide as he faces Law. The man standing in the doorway doesn't even flinch, staring Zoro down with hard eyes. "You heard me."

"No… no way. Blackbeard trusted Ace. Ace never betrayed him. Why would he-?"

"Don't ask questions I can't answer." Law seems in a bad mood. He has been for days. "All I know is that Blackbeard is promising anybody who can bring him Ace Portgas and his brothers a huge sum. Larger than what he would offer for most large-scale heists. More than any murder. This is important."

"He knows about Sabo," Nami mutters. "That must be it. Come on, let's go check their apartment!"

"I've already checked," Law says shortly. "There's nothing there. Only some blood on the wall and on the floor. But whatever happened, I assume that all three of them got away- Blackbeard wouldn't have asked for all three otherwise."

Usopp puts his head in his hands. They only came to meet up with Law, maybe form an alliance against Blackbeard and gain some form of protection. Instead, they arrived when he was due back soon and when he did arrive, it was with bad news.

Zoro swears viciously. "Where would they have gone?! What the hell could have happened?!"

"Let's scout out the grey district?" Sanji recommends, stubbing out his cigarette and standing up. "We can meet with Trafalgar another time. If they're dying in some alleyway somewhere-"

"Alright, alright, let's just go," Zoro growls. "Come on. We have to find Cap'."

The strawhats stand and on his way out, Zoro tells Law, "Sorry. But this is an emergency."

"I know, I know-" Law seems to hesitate for a moment. "If they're hurt, bring them here. I can help."

Zoro raises an eyebrow. "Didn't know you were close with them."

"I'm not. Now go - your crew is going to leave you behind. Don't want you getting lost," Law says, with little bite in his voice.

Zoro flips him off and takes off after his crew, leaving Law to stew in his own thoughts.


	27. I Hate This

**** The following morning, after even more pestering from the nurses and Marco, the trio eventually decide that they have to face the music at some point. Better to get it over with now than to stay cooped up in the med bay forever. It takes effort to make the decision, especially for Ace, who knows that he's going to have to face his family again, and Sabo, who is still nursing bitter feelings over the operation. But they manage to convince themselves (and each other) to do it eventually. 

Getting Sabo to his feet proves difficult. He's weak-limbed and dizzy, and covered in bruises, and both Ace and Luffy have to grab him under the arms just to help him stand. Once he's on his feet, Sabo leans mostly on Ace, right arm slung around his shoulder, one vibrant wing keeping him upright. It's tricky, but they manage it. Luffy unlocks the infirmary door and together, the trio leave their sanctuary, stepping out into the corridor. 

For a moment, Ace can’t decide which direction to go. Who should they go to see? He and Sabo exchange glances and Sabo decides, “It’s still pretty early, right? They should be eating breakfast somewhere. Can you remember where?”

“Yeah, the hall. But there’ll be a lot of them, all in one room… are you sure?”

Sabo nods. “They’re harbouring us. The least we can do is socialize with them, so long as you know you’ll be alright with it…?”

“Yeah, I’ll be okay. So long as they aren’t too pushy and they don’t try to do anything to you two - which I seriously doubt they will. Just… stay cautious.”

“You say that like you don’t trust them,” Luffy says. 

“I… don’t. Not completely.”

Luffy shuts his mouth. The trio start making their way up the corridor, towards where Ace says the hall is, and Sabo looks like he’s getting paler by the minute but he doesn’t complain. They walk - or stumble, in his case - in silence. Ace is wrapped up in his own thoughts, his own worries. A huge part of him wants to just run away, but he knows he can’t. He has to face them. He doesn’t know how he feels about that, but he knows that it’s not good. Not good at all. 

They traipse down the wide marble staircase alone. They haven’t seen anybody yet. Luffy stares around, wide-eyed, taking in the expansive space, tall ceilings, beautiful architecture. The entirety of Wakeshead Hall is beautiful, and Sabo stares at the ground, focusing on keeping his feet moving, trying not to look around. Places like this bring back bad memories. 

The trio cross the entrance hall and outside a pair of large, wooden double-doors, Ace takes a deep breath. “This is it.”

“It’s gonna be fine,” Luffy says. “I know it is.”

Sabo nods, arm still slung around Ace. His missing hand is on show, right there in the open. He doesn’t attempt to hide it. “Let’s do it.”

Taking one last deep breath, Ace pushes the doors open. 

For a moment, nobody inside the vast room seems to notice them. Ace is hit with a wave of nostalgia, of memory. The dining hall is vast and airy, bright sunlight streaming through the tall bay windows lining the walls. A long table makes up the centre, heaped with so much food that Ace almost feels uncomfortable, more food than he’s seen in the last eight years. The smell is incredibly intense. Sabo tenses sharply against him. Luffy shifts a little closer to Ace’s other side and they stand for a moment, huddled in the doorway, watching as people slowly start to notice them. 

The huge table is lined with chairs, and each in turn houses a person. One of Ace’s old family to every seat. They eat on merrily, talking in amongst themselves, but they start noticing Ace and his brothers, nudging one another and pointing. Silence and murmurs sweep up the table and, sat at the end, Marco looks up and meets Ace’s eyes. After only a few seconds, the whole table is silent, staring at the trio. Ace feels Sabo tense even further. 

At the head of the table, beside Marco, Ace’s Oyaji stands up. 

Ace is frozen to the spot, paralysed, staring up at the tall man. He can barely breathe. He can see, out of the corner of his eye, Luffy clenching his fist - probably out of instinct. As though he’s facing a dangerous foe. The expression on his Oyaji’s face is unreadable; Ace couldn’t interpret what he’s thinking even if he tried. Sabo doesn’t move an inch. All the air feels like it’s been sucked out of the room all at once. 

“...Son?” Oyaji asks. 

Ace takes a deep breath. “Hey, Pops.”

All at once, the room explodes into noise and motion. One second Ace is holding Sabo up, standing perfectly still, and the next, Sabo has backed off fast. Then hands land on Ace’s shoulders, there are arms around him; it’s Thatch, yelling about how happy he is that Ace is alive, how much he missed him, how much they all missed him. Ace lets himself be smothered - there’s somebody else there now, Haruta maybe, and then Vista, and then Izo. More and more people join the crush and Ace wants to enjoy it, wants to feel a rush of joy or warmth or  _ something  _ but...nothing comes. 

Through the mass of bodies, Ace glances over his shoulder. He can just about make out Sabo and Luffy, the former leaning on the latter, looking at him. 

Thatch shakes him and Ace is wrenched back to the present. “You’re here! You’re actually back!”

“I… yeah, I guess I am,” Ace says lamely. 

There are more shouts, more bursts of laughter and chatter, and eventually, a voice breaks out over the hubbub; “Alright, alright, give the boy some space!”

The crowd disperses almost immediately. Ace looks up and his eyes meet Oyaji’s. For a second, Ace’s anxiety rushes back and a part of him wants to run, to get as far away as possible. Still, he holds his ground, feeling dozens of eyes on him as Oyaji approaches. When he’s only a few feet from him, Ace manages to say, “It’s been a while.”

“Welcome home, son.” Whitebeard smiles down at him - a jovial, benevolent smile. “Welcome home.”

A hand touches Ace’s shoulder - another person’s arm snakes around his waist. Ace’s wings come around his brothers without him even having to think about it. It’s an instinct. From all around, eyes are fixed on the two strangers… and not all of the gazes are completely friendly. Ace remembers, very well, the mistrust towards outsiders that most of the Whitebeard family harbour. 

He decides, in that moment, that he doesn’t care.

“Oyaji… these are my brothers, Sabo and Luffy. Sabo, Luffy… this is my old family.”

It’s not very noticeable, but Whitebeard frowns, ever so slightly. It’s only a slight tightening of the jaw, a little narrowing of his kind eyes, but Ace notices it immediately. “Your… brothers?”

“Yeah. Yeah, my brothers. I’ve known Luffy since… since it happened. Since I was ten. And Sabo joined us a year ago, last winter. They were there for me, out in the city.”

“That’s… that’s good, son.” Whitebeard smiles. It doesn’t reach his eyes. “It’s good to meet you two. Thank you for taking care of our lost family member.”

“It’s cool, old man!” Luffy says carelessly. “You don’t gotta thank us.” 

“Still, I should.” Whitebeard smiles down at Ace again. “So, I’m guessing you have a lot to tell us about?” 

“Yeah,” Ace agrees, letting himself be pulled back into the mess of activity. But something inside of him stays deeply unsettled, and he doesn’t stray far from his brothers even as he’s tugged into a chair at the table. Dozens of people pat him on the back, hug him around the waist, yell into his ear that they missed him. 

Somebody asks, once Ace is fully seated, “What happened after you left?” 

Marco frowns. “Maybe you shouldn’t-”

“I ended up in the city,” Ace replies, skirting over the part of the story that makes him uncomfortable. “Met Luffy.”

“Who’s Luffy? The small one, right?”

“Yeah, that’s him-” Ace glances behind him, trying to find where Sabo and Luffy are. They’re nowhere to be seen. Bewildered, he asks, “Where did they go?”

“I dunno - it’s not important.” Thatch shoves himself into the seat beside Ace. “You’re really here! What’s the city like? Where did you live? How did you find Marco, how did you get back?!”

“I’m sorry, I gotta find my brothers-”

“You’re really back!” Haruta sits down on the seat to Ace’s other side. “Ace! It’s been so long! How’ve you been? You look like you need a shower - maybe some shampoo would do you good-”

“You’ve got  _ shampoo  _ here?!” The words slip out of Ace’s mouth without his permission. Of course they have shampoo. They have everything here. “Sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“You don’t have shampoo in the city?!”

Somebody laughs. “Ace hasn’t changed a bit. Of course he forgot to buy shampoo. Hey, Ace, what was your house like in the city?”

“Which district did you live in?”

Ace laughs uncomfortably, still looking around for his brothers. “You’re acting like I don’t live there anymore.”

“Of course you don’t! You’re back here now! Why would you want to leave?”

An uncomfortable tension rolls in Ace’s stomach. He feels slightly sick. “Look, I promise we can talk later, but did any of you see where they went-”

“Who’re your friends?” Somebody else asks, uncomfortably close to Ace’s ear. “Why does the kid only have one wing? And the blonde guy looks like hell-”

“They’re not my friends, they’re my brothers.” Ace’s voice comes out as a growl. “Look, I can’t just leave them-”

He finally manages to wrench himself free of Thatch’s iron grip, standing abruptly. Silence falls quickly. Ace can feel eyes on him everywhere. Marco is looking at him, concerned and confused in equal measure, and Ace tries not to meet his eyes. 

“Look,” he says clearly. “I’m glad to be back. I am. And I know you all mean well. But my brothers are my priority right now, especially after the hell we all went through back in the city. If they left, I need to find them.” Then, awkwardly, “I’m sorry.”

Ace turns on his heel and walks purposefully away from the table. He doesn’t look back. He can feel the stares on his back but nobody speaks up, nobody tries to stop him. He feels bad, but at the same time, he’s glad to be away from it all. He reaches the double doors, leaves and makes sure to close them behind him, ending up back in the large entrance hall again. 

Sabo is leaning against the wall to the side of the doors, breathing deeply. Luffy hovers at his side, looking worried. Both of them look up at Ace as he reenters the entrance hall. 

“What happened?” Ace asks quietly. “Sabo? You alright?” 

“Somebody pressed against my wrist. They were all shoving, I guess they didn’t notice-” Sabo grits his teeth. “Fuck. Sorry. I should have stayed. It was just a shock, I guess.”

“It’s okay, it’s not your fault. It was just a panic in there. I don’t blame you,” Ace says. “How’s it feeling now?”

“It’s fi-”

“Don’t say fine.”

Sabo shoots him a deadpan look. “It’s not awful. Okay? I promise it’s not awful.”

“Alright, alright, I believe you.” Ace doesn’t believe him. 

“What happened in there? How did you manage to leave?” Luffy asks. “They really wanted to talk to you…”

“I just told them I wanted to see my brothers. That I’m glad to be back, but you guys are my top priority.”

Sabo looks up at him. “You didn’t need to say that.”

“It’s true.”

Luffy looks wary. “We should go back to the med bay. They’ll come out soon.”

“I… allright. We can do that. Aren’t you two hungry, though?”

At that very moment, Luffy’s stomach rumbles audibly. He glances at the other two, slightly guiltily. “A little bit, I guess.”

“I am, too,” Sabo agrees. “But it’s not gonna kill us. We ate the morning before Blackbeard turned up. We’ll be okay, right?”

“Yeah, I know, but… we don’t have to. They’ve got food to spare here,” Ace says. “So much goddamn food. I don’t want to watch you two go hungry ever again if I don’t have to. And right now, I don’t have to. As long as you two are okay with it, can’t we just?”

Sabo studies him for a moment, before nodding. “Okay. Come on, let’s get something to eat.”

Breakfast is awkward and quiet. Ace and his brothers stay huddled at one end of the long table, barely touching their food, weighed down on by the stares and the whispers of Ace’s confused family. Sabo can’t even name half of the things on the table - strips of a strange meat that looks almost burnt, long bowls of small, round beans drenched in an orange-red sauce, bread that looks like it’s been scorched or grilled slightly. Ace names them for him- ‘bacon’, ‘beans’, ‘toast’ -but Sabo can barely remember half of them by the end of it. 

Real food is… hard to go back to. After years of bland, flavourless macs, it tastes too strong on Sabo’s tongue, too rich, too filling. He has a hard time not spitting it out. Ace looks tense, barely eating, only answering the occasional question thrown his way by somebody close by. Sabo concentrates on the difficult task of eating with only a left hand, and it’s hard, but not hard enough that it can distract him from Luffy. 

_ Luffy. _ The kid looks so ridiculously out of place that it’s almost laughable. He’s got his single wing wrapped tightly around himself and he looks very small, slouched in his seat. His messy hair is sticking up everywhere - his skin is dirty, and he’s changed back into his own clothes, even though the sweatshirt is torn and a little bloody in places. He pokes at his food and keeps glancing around, as though he’s not allowed to eat it, as though he’s breaking some kind of rule. He looks so uncomfortable that Sabo wants to grab him and leave, take him far away from here. 

Ace appears to have noticed, too. “You okay?”

“Are we really allowed all of this?” 

“As much as we want. I promise,” Ace says. “Just take what you want to eat, okay? They won’t mind.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about, it’s just-” Luffy makes a quiet noise of frustration, trying not to attract the attention of the Whitebeards. “There’s no food in the grey district, or on the Stacks. If they’ve got so much, why don’t they share?”

“It’s… I don’t know,” Ace eventually decides on saying. “It’s just the way things are.” 

Luffy looks down and says nothing, and they lapse into uncomfortable silence. Sabo hasn’t felt this anxious in a long time.

After breakfast, Marco shows the trio to their rooms. Sabo’s room itself is larger than his whole trailer was, and it feels almost as big as Ace and Luffy’s entire apartment. It’s so large that he feels small within it. Marco tells him to make himself at home, and shows Ace and Luffy to their rooms, too, but in the end, all three of them end up camping out on Sabo’s bed, unable to stay in their own rooms alone. The bed itself is large enough, easily, for them to all fit on. 

For a while, nobody speaks. Sabo still feels like some part of him is in shock, like it hasn’t processed what happened yet. As though he still can’t make sense of what’s happened, and where they are. 

“What are we going to do now?” Luffy asks.

“What do you two want to do?” responds Ace. “Because I… don’t know what I want. I honestly don’t.”

“I want you two to be happy. And I guess, on a wider scale… I want to change things,” Sabo responds. “In the city. As I always have. But I guess the people here aren’t too keen on that.”

“They like to stay out of the way of the city, yeah,” Ace sighs. “What about you, Luffy?”

“I miss my crew,” Luffy responds, immediately. “I want to get back to them. And, Ace… I don’t like it here. It’s strange. There’s too much food and too much space and too much… everything. Feels like I shouldn’t be here.”

“I feel that way, too,” Sabo agrees. “This place reminds me of the Outlooks’.”

“I don’t know how I feel,” Ace says eventually. “But if you two want to go, I’m gone. Just like that. You two are the thing I care about most in all of this, so if you want to leave, then so do I.”

“It means a lot,” promises Sabo. “Okay, so, what’s our plan for now?”

Ace sits back against the cushions, grimacing. They’re soft, too soft, in comparison to the ones at home. “I don’t know. Maybe wait it out for a while? See how things go? And the second you want to go back to the city, either of you, we take off. Can we agree to that?”

Luffy nods. “Just as long as I’ll get to see my crew again.”

“I promise you will. Sabo?” 

“It sounds good to me. Though, what will your family think?”

“I don’t know. They’re glad to have me back but they seem to think that things are going to stay like this. That I’m never going to leave again. But… I don’t know what I’m going to do yet, and they need to understand that.” Ace rubs his forehead. “It’s a lot to process. Being back here.”

“I know. But if they’re stupid and they don’t let you leave, we’ll find a way out, right?”

“Of course we will, Lu,” Sabo agrees. “This is going to be fine. I know it is.”

Ace can’t help it - his eyes flit to rest on Sabo’s stump. Blackbeard’s beating is still fresh in all of their minds. It’s the kind of thing that you can’t put out of your head, an intrusive memory, the kind of thing that can make him panic just in the mere act of thinking about it. Ace can still remember, all too clearly, the sound of Blackbeard’s laughter. The crack of fingers breaking. The look in Sabo’s eyes that made it look as though the fire in him was out. 

As though thinking the same thing, Luffy scoots up the bed and plops down next to Sabo, snuggling into his side. “This bed is too comfortable.”

“Yeah. Feels like my old home,” agrees Sabo. 

Ace stays silent, stomach churning, as he tries not to think about what’s to come. 

* * *

Dinner is, if it’s even possible, more awkward still.

It starts off relatively well. Ace, Sabo and Luffy sit together, Sabo in the middle. The food is lavish and plentiful, and Luffy can barely stomach a few mouthfuls of the stuff. They’re halfway through the first course when the questions start pouring in, and that’s when things turn sour. At first it’s the pompadour guy - he asks the first question. That’s what really gets the ball rolling. 

“So… what’s your house like? In the city?”

Sabo looks at Ace, who sighs and mutters, “Not much to talk about, really. We survived. It was an okay place.”

“Yeah but, like, what district did you live in?” Thatch is annoyingly curious. 

“The grey district,” Luffy pipes up. “Though, Sabo used to live on the Stacks ‘til they blew up his place and he moved in with us.”

Thatch blinks. By now, people have started to pause their conversations, turning heads to listen in on them. Luffy grips his fork so tightly that it feels hot in his fist. 

“The… grey district? Isn’t that a pretty bad place, though?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Ace exhales through his teeth. “Yeah. It… wasn’t the best. Though, it’s not as bad as the Stacks there. We got by.”

“But, like… it wasn’t that bad, right?” Thatch asks quietly.

“No, not really. The city ain’t that bad-” Ace starts to say. 

Sabo interrupts him. “The city’s pretty bad. You people could help, you know-”

Ace kicks him under the table (even though it isn’t nearly as hard as it could be), and Sabo shuts his mouth. There’s awkward silence for a moment. Thatch stares at them. By now, even more people are listening, turning in their seats to look at them. Luffy stabs at a piece of meat on his plate that makes his mouth sting when he tries to eat it; it’s too strong. 

Thatch ventures on cautiously. “Well… what have you been up to in the city, Ace? What’s your job?”

It’s obvious that he’s grasping at straws. Luffy glances at Ace, wondering how he’s going to answer this one. Ace himself looks intensely uncomfortable. “Just odd jobs and stuff, I guess. Just enough to get macs, and money.”

“Macs? Wait, you guys ate macs?”

“Uh...yeah? Why?”

“Aren’t they for really poor people? Like, people who can’t afford food?” Thatch looks more concerned by the minute. “Didn’t you guys eat actual food?”

“I mean, not really. But nobody does. Nobody can really afford real food, unless you work in the high district or you run a gang or something,” Ace rushes to assure him. “And we definitely couldn’t - Sabo works the conveyor and a pub in the nights, and I do whatever I can to get cash, and we’re trying to keep Luffy in school on top of that-”

“I help too!” Luffy defends. “Me and my crew do plenty!”

“Yeah, Lu, we know you do.” Sabo’s shoulders are drawn tight. He’s tense. 

A voice breaks out over the table, louder than Thatch’s. The guy with the funny moustache - Vista. He has a jolly face and a top hat. “Well, whatever happened back there, we’ve got Ace back now. One more member of our family!”

Cheers break out. Ace’s face colours slightly. “Really, I don’t know-”

“Yeah! You don’t ever have to think about the city again, Ace!” 

“You’re gonna be safe here!”

It’s obvious that they care about him. Ace is smiling now - it must be impossible not to - as he’s showered with affection. Luffy is glad he’s happy. Sabo, however, isn’t smiling. His fist is clenched under the table and he’s staring at his plate, eyes filled with emotion. Luffy puts a hand on his arm and he flinches away. 

Nearby, one of the Whitebeards says, “Yeah! You can forget about it all, forget the city even exists. Once your friends leave, it’ll be like it never happened! You’ll have everything you could ever want, Ace!”

That’s obviously the last straw. 

Sabo stands, dropping his fork onto his plate with a clatter. Ace stops talking, looking up at him, and Luffy does the same. Dozens of eyes on him, Sabo says stiffly, “Excuse me.”

He turns around and limps out of the hall, frame stiff, and Luffy watches him go, wanting to stand up and follow him. He and Ace exchange glances, and Ace bites his lip, obviously conflicted. This whole thing definitely isn’t going to plan. 

Sabo doesn’t return to the hall again.

 


	28. Brothers

**** Ace and Luffy leave dinner early. It’s hard to sit in there, relaxed, without Sabo. They traipse out together, leaving Thatch disappointed at the table. Outside, Sabo is nowhere to be seen, so they decide to check his room, going up the long marble stairs side-by-side. Neither of them speak. By the time they reach Sabo’s room, Ace feels even more confused, even more conflicted. About everything. 

Luffy doesn’t knock before entering. Inside, Sabo is sat on the floor against the wall, facing the window. It’s dark and the room is lit by candlelight, but the curtains aren’t drawn. The blonde’s legs are pulled up to his chest and he doesn’t look up as they come in, nor as they sit down on either side of him. Nobody speaks for a while. Worry burns up inside of Ace’s chest, but he doesn’t act on it. 

Eventually, Sabo murmurs, “They’re not  _ doing  _ anything.”

Ace and Luffy stay silent. There’s not much Ace feels that he can say. Even if he could think of a reply, he doubts it would make the blonde feel any better. Sabo sits there for a while, chin on his knees, before continuing. 

“They’re not trying to help. They’ve got… so much space. So much food. So many resources. They’re rolling in wealth and they’re happy to stay here, in this stupid dome, and ignore the  _ suffering  _ of the people living in the city. The gangs fighting to the death in the Sabaody district. The exploitation in the industrial district. The people dying of disease in the grey district. The families starving on the Stacks. They’re happy to just ignore it all.”

“It’s awful,” Ace agrees after a moment. “I know. I grew up here. I know they don’t care about the city. I know they don’t like to think about how bad things are back there. But… we can’t change them. It’s the way they are.”

“I can’t stay here, Ace.” Sabo says. “I can’t. I’d rather be out in the wilds than here. At least things are real out there. I can’t…  _ hide  _ behind all of this wealth, all of this security. I can’t. I can’t do it.”

“I know.”

Luffy tucks his wing around himself, putting his chin on his knees. “One of them asked when we’re gonna leave. They think we aren’t staying, Ace. They think we’re gonna leave you.”

“Yeah, well, you’re not. You’re definitely not. Not after everything we went through to stay together.” Ace takes a deep breath and then exhales, slowly. “Okay. So Sabo’s up for leaving. Luffy…?”

“I need to see my crew. I need to.” Luffy shudders. “I don’t like it here, either.”

“Alright, so two votes out of three…”

Sabo looks up. “We’re not leaving if you don’t want to.”

“I…” Ace struggles for words. “I don’t know what I want. I guess… this place makes me uncomfortable, too. More than uncomfortable. I can’t imagine staying here, not after everything that’s happened, after everything I’ve seen. And I want you two to be happy. But at the same time… I’ve been missing them for so long. Wishing I could see them. Wishing I could be back here. And now that I am, I don’t want to let it go.”

Ace makes a frustrated noise, curling up too, as though to mirror the other two. His head slips to rest on Sabo’s shoulder. “I just don’t know what to do. I want to make you two happy, but I want to make them happy, too. And I can’t ignore what’s happening in the city, I can’t just leave it all behind, but… I want you to be safe. And maybe I want a place where I’m not constantly worried about being stabbed in my sleep. Maybe I just… don’t know. I don’t know what I want.”

“You don’t have to decide yet,” Luffy says. “We gotta stay here ‘til Sabo’s healed up, anyway. And then we can decide what to do.”

Sabo groans quietly. “I dunno if I can survive that long.”

Ace glances at him. “It really affects you that much?”

“I can’t stay here without thinking about it.” Sabo shudders. “About the people who must be freezing to death in the Stacks right as we sit here, with too many blankets to use, in a heated building with rooms to spare. Or the people who must be starving in the districts, when we’ve got so much food that it could feed armies. I can’t… I can’t stop thinking about it. Feeling guilty. Feeling angry. Like everything that I’ve fought for is just… fake, somehow.”

He meets Ace’s eyes. “And I know that your family aren’t bad people. I know they’re not. They seem friendly, and they’re happy to have you back, they are. They just… don’t understand how bad things are. Or how much harm they’re doing by letting it go on without helping. I just wish I could help them to understand, but… they don’t like me. Or Luffy. I guess they expected you to be dependent on them, to be glad to be back, but with us around, they’re scared they might lose you again. I can tell.”

“I’d kinda noticed, too. Things aren’t how they’d imagined they would be.” Ace stares at the ground for a moment longer before standing, abruptly, and moving to close the curtains. “Sorry. Habit. You never know who’s looking.”

Luffy stands up, too. “I’m tired. Can we sleep?” 

Sabo nods, but when he looks over at the bed, a bitter feeling churns in his stomach. He can’t imagine going to sleep now, in that too-comfortable bed, on a mattress that does nothing but bring back bad memories. He can’t even imagine his brothers sleeping in different rooms. He doesn’t think he can quite handle it tonight. 

Ace seems to understand, without Sabo having to say it. “Let’s take the floor?”

“Deal.”

Luffy and Ace go to their rooms, coming back with arms heaped with blankets and pillows. All three of them pile all of their blankets into a heap in one corner, far away from the bed, and Luffy dives into the pile carelessly, burrowing deeply into the mess of blankets. Sabo clambers in too, sandwiched in next to Luffy, trying hard not to aggravate his injuries. Finally, Ace climbs in last (after blowing out the single candle in the room), scooting up to lean against Sabo. The trio press in close, Sabo right in their centre, and for the first time in days, Sabo feels something close to safe.

They fall asleep quickly.

* * *

 

Blackbeard is here.

How he got to Wakeshead, Sabo doesn't know. He doesn't spend long contemplating it. The blonde sprints through the empty halls of Wakeshead, heart pounding, head throbbing, terror shooting through his veins like ice. His injuries sting with every footstep, every ragged breath, every pound of his heart in his head. He can hear Blackbeard, only a few corridors away, following him. Searching for him.  _ Chasing him _ .

Sabo throws himself into another room - the med bay. His brothers aren't here. He doesn't know where they are; he lost them when Blackbeard first attacked. He prays that they're alright.

_ How did it all go this wrong?! _

Slamming the med bay door shut, Sabo throws himself under a bed, trying desperately to conceal himself. He's never felt this scared. His wrist is throbbing like fire. For some reason, the burn scars hurt, too. He doesn't have time to wonder why.

The infirmary door flies open.

For one heartstopping moment, Sabo is paralysed, unable to move. Then a hand grabs him and he's physically dragged out from underneath the bed. Blackbeard hauls him up by the throat, and Sabo can smell his putrid breath, can feel his nails dig into the flesh of his throat. He claws desperately at the hand suffocating him but Blackbeard only grins, wildly, evilly. Sabo is sure, in this moment, that he's going to die. He's dead. He's so terrified that he can't even think straight.

A hand - not Blackbeard’s: smaller, cooler, gentler - lands on his shoulder. “Sabo?”

Sabo struggles harder. It feels as though his windpipe is about to give in. Blackbeard’s dark, insane eyes are all he can see, and he stares into them, trying to pull up some facade of defiance. It doesn't work. All he can feel is a bone-deep coil of terror buried deep in his gut, messing with his thoughts, making every second more tortuous and horrifying. 

Another hand, this time on his arm. “Sabo? Sabo, come on. Sabo,  _ please _ , wake up. You're scaring m- you're scaring _ us _ . Come on, just wake up-”

Blackbeard squeezes a little harder and a yell escapes from Sabo, tearing out of his raw throat. He feels his neck snap, and then his spine - his rips creak and pop and crack open like matchsticks. His skull bursts like an egg under the pressure and everything goes blurry as Sabo feels his entire body break. The pain is horrific, but the fear… god, the  _ fear _ . That's the worst part. Sabo stares into Blackbeard’s eyes and feels his body give in, feels his heart stop, feels every part of him break. 

Blackbeard doesn't stop laughing.

Sabo comes too, lying on the floor of his room, in a tangled mess of blankets. At first, he thinks he's died. He wonders vaguely what kind of hell this is. It doesn't seem as bad as he would have thought it would be. He registers, slowly, that his face is wet. His throat is sore. He's staring at the ceiling, not truly registering it, and there’s a hand clasped very tightly around his own. Sabo realised that he's breathing very heavily, and wonders absently why such is the case.

Slowly, he registers a voice. Somebody speaking. Somebody saying his name.

“Sabo? You alive in there?”

All at once, sensation returns - memory comes rushing back. Sabo sits up quickly, too quickly, and his head spins violently. For a moment, his view of Ace and Luffy is blurred and hazy. He hears the voice become more panicked and resists the urge to fall back. He can't allow himself to pass out now of all times.

Slowly, Sabo’s vision returns. The room is dark. He meets Ace’s eyes. The other teen looks worried as hell, and even as Sabo meets his gaze, he slumps slightly in relief. He's sitting on Sabo’s right hand side and on the other side...Sabo’s eyes fall on Luffy - the one clasping his hand. Luffy looks very pale. Worried. Concern shines in his brown eyes. Both of his brothers are staring at him as though he's about to explode and Sabo realises, stomach sinking, what must have happened.

“You were having a nightmare,” Ace says, after a moment. “A bad one. You were talking in your sleep and then Luffy realised that you were crying - talking about Blackbeard. Then you started yelling. Sabo…”

“I’m so sorry.” Sabo doesn't know what, but something forces him to say those words. “Ace, I’m sorry. I-” 

“You don't need to be sorry.” Luffy uses his sleeve to wipe Sabo’s wet cheek. “Blackbeard needs to be sorry.” 

Tears prick Sabo’s eyes. He hopes, foolishly, that the darkness will hide them; of course it doesn't. Ace and Luffy know him too well. Luffy climbs into Sabo’s arms, right into his personal space, and Sabo presses his face into his hair and lets the shudders rack him, feeling two skinny arms and a wing come around him. Then Ace is there too, huge wings curling around all three of them like some giant, feathered cocoon, and Sabo can do nothing but cry harder. He's still shaking. Blackbeard's face flashes before his eyes. 

“I’m s-sorry,” Sabo chokes out again, “I need to be stronger. Stronger than this.”

“No, you don't.” Ace’s voice rumbles against his cheek. “You don't have to be strong. Not after everything that happened. Hell, I'm still scared and it wasn't even me.”

Luffy is still holding his hand. “Fuck Blackbeard. Seriously,  _ fuck _ Blackbeard.”

Sabo cries until he can't keep his eyes open, until his body feels weak and drained. He finds himself wondering, ironically, why he's cried so much since it happened. Why it's so easy to cry all of a sudden. Why he feels so broken, even after surviving the whole gruesome thing.

Luffy pushes him back against the bedcovers, burrowing into his side, and Ace isn't far behind. Sabo’s hand is still trembling. His eyes feel crusty and dry from crying. 

“I'm so-” Sabo starts to say.

“Don't.” Ace tightens his jaw. “Don't say sorry.”

“I… thank you. Thank you for everything, thank you for not having up on me. Thank you.” Sabo sniffs. “It'll get better. I can move on from this. I swear.”

“You don't need to. Not yet.”

Luffy nods, pulling one of the blankets over himself and Sabo. “We’re gonna kill Blackbeard when we get back. And then Franky can make you a new hand! It'll be really cool. Trust me, Franky’s awesome. He’ll make you really amazing, like a cyborg!”

Sabo chokes on a watery laugh. “Maybe.”

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door. All three of them freeze. It's stupid, but for a moment, Sabo’s terrified that Blackbeard really is here. Then Marco’s voice calls out from behind the door, “Sabo? We heard yelling. Should I get your brothers, yoi?”

“We’re in here, too,” Ace replies. “And we’re alright.”

“What was the yelling? It sounded like Sabo, yoi.”

“It was nothing.” Sabo’s voice comes out more scratchy than he would have liked. “We’re fine. We were just messing around.”

“Alright…” Marco sounds dubious. “Let me know if you need anything, yoi.”

“Got it.”

It's only when his footsteps fade away that Sabo relaxes again, leaning back against the pile of blankets. His nerves are shot to hell. He can't imagine sleeping right now. Ace seems to sense his discomfort and says, “I don't think I can sleep right now.”

“Me neither.”

Luffy perks up. “Wait, I’ve got an idea!”

Sabo and Ace watch as he dashes out of the room, sitting in comfortable silence as they wait for the kid to get back. Sabo can't say that he feels exactly  _ safe _ , but he's close to being so, and that's enough. Luffy comes back in after a few moments, holding-

“Cards?” Ace raises an eyebrow. 

“Yeah! I found them in a draw in my room earlier.” Luffy grins. “Wanna play bitch?”

“Bitch it is,” Sabo agrees, smiling a little. “I'll deal.”

The trio sit in the centre of the room, on the floor - Ace lying on his stomach, Luffy cross-legged, Sabo leaning back against the bed. Sabo deals and the game begins. It's a good distraction, cheating and yelling and competing and fun rivalry. It helps to take his mind off of things. 

Sabo is sure, for a little while, that things are going to be okay.

* * *

Okay. So maybe things aren't going to be okay.

Sabo wakes up feeling a lot less optimistic. Another nightmare. This one didn’t make him yell out but it was unpleasant, unpleasant as hell. It obviously shook Ace and Luffy up, too. Sabo wonders how long they’re going to go on for. Nightmares are bad anyway, but these ones are too vivid and too terrifying and too heartstopping to ignore. The terror they strike him with lasts long after he’s woken up. 

Sabo decides, fuck it, he’s going to try (at least) to get them out of his mind. He gets out of bed soon after waking and takes a shower. The water is actually  _ warm _ and  _ clean _ and it’s surprisingly refreshing. There are three types of shampoo and Sabo doesn’t know how to use any of them, so he just squirts a small amount of one into his palm (difficult, with one hand, but he manages it) and tries to scrub his scalp. His bruises and scrapes sting in the hot water, and under the thick bandages, his wrist burns. It feels strangely cleansing. 

He comes out of the shower scrubbed raw, hair hanging wet around his shoulders. He tries to feel new. Tries to feel alive again. Rubs under his eyes until he feels awake. Towels his hair dry. Brushes his teeth. Does his best to scrape the dried blood off of his clothes and puts them on, ignoring the clothes the Whitebeard family have provided for him. He leaves the bathroom feeling just a little bit better. 

He, Ace and Luffy skip breakfast. Luffy goes off to find Shanks - those two need to catch up, and Sabo and Ace are all too willing to let them. Even though Sabo’s chest feels just a little tighter without Luffy around, he and Ace let him go. Then it’s just the two of them, and Ace suggests, “We could go out to the grounds? I could show you the outside?”

Sabo glances out of their bedroom window furtively. “I don’t know…”

“Trust me, it’ll be fine. We can get away from it all. And you won’t have to talk to my family.”

Sabo shifts uneasily. “You act like I hate them. I don’t. They just… have views that I don’t exactly agree with.”

Ace bites his lip. “Look, I still don’t exactly know what I’m doing-”

“Do you want to see them?”

“I mean… I guess. I want to give it another try. I don’t want them to think I hate them - I don’t hate them.”

“Alright.” Sabo moves towards the door, still limping a little. “Then we can go see them, right?”

“Are you sure-”

“Ace.” Sabo sounds slightly stern. “I know I had a rough night, but you don’t need to worry about me. I’m not gonna die.”

Ace hesitates and then nods, smiling a little. They go downstairs together, passing different members of Whitebeard’s family as they go, and Ace says hi to all of them, smiles at every passerby. Sabo steels himself, ready to socialise with the people he least wants to socialise with. He can do this. He can do this. 

He  _ hopes  _ he can do this.

Suddenly, as they reach the bottom of the stairs, something hits Sabo. He stops in his tracks and Ace pauses, confused. “What is it?”

“I...shit. I just realised something.” Sabo runs a hand through his hair. “I have to… sort something out.”

“What is it?” Ace looks concerned. 

“It’s nothing big - trust me.” Sabo lowers his voice. “Luffy’s crew don’t know where he is. They’ll be worried. And I just thought of a way we can get in contact with them.”

* * *

“Nothing.” Zoro slams the door shut behind him. “Absolutely fucking nothing. Nobody’s heard from any of them for days now. Not since the night Blackbeard put out the bounty on their heads.”

“It’s hopeless.” Nami rubs her face tiredly. “And there’s been no activity from the apartment?” 

“I was watching it all day,” Usopp pipes up. “Nothing. And we searched inside - there’s nothing there that could tell us what happened.”

Chopper looks worried. “What if we don’t find him?”

From across the room, Law chips in, “If Strawhat-ya is with his brothers, they’ll keep him safe. It’s Portgas-ya and Sabo-ya you need to worry about.”

Zoro is obviously irritable. “Well excuse the kid for worrying about our captain. He’s just-”

Robin puts a hand on his arm. “Zoro.”

“Sorry.” The swordsman puffs out a breath between his teeth. “Alright. Plan. What can we do next?”

At that second, something buzzes. Zoro goes still for a moment and then fishes his phone out of his pocket, looking slightly annoyed. When he sees the caller ID, however, his face goes slack with shock.

“Who is it?” Nami asks, standing up. 

Zoro answers the call. “Luffy?”

Immediately, the whole room goes silent. Zoro doesn’t speak for a moment, listening intently, and Nami hisses, “Turn on the speaker!”

After a few more long moments, Zoro pulls the phone away from his ear, puts it on speaker and says, “Sabo?”

“Hi. Figured you must have been worried about Luffy, so we decided to call.” Sabo’s voice sounds rough and scratchy and weak. “He’s okay.”

Zoro exhales deeply. “Thank fuck. We were worried. What happened?”

“It’s a… really,  _ really  _ long story.” Ace’s voice.

“Ace?” Nami frowns. “Is Luffy there?”

“He’s talking to somebody right now.” Sabo again. “We’ll get him to call later, when he’s around. But he’s fine. He wasn’t hurt, aside from a black eye.”

“What happened?” repeats Zoro. “All we know is that Blackbeard is after you three, and you’re nowhere to be found. Where are you?”

“Blackbeard found out about Sabo. Broke into the apartment, beat him to hell. Made us watch.” Ace’s voice is pained. Nami winces. “We only just managed to get away. We ran to some friends across the city and we’re staying with them now.”

“Where?” 

“We… can’t exactly say. This place is as secret as a place can be. But trust me when I say that Luffy is fine, I’m okay, Sabo’s…”

“I’m okay, too.”

He doesn’t sound it. Either way, Nami finds herself sagging with relief. Luffy’s alive. Luffy’s okay. He’s fine. It feels as though oxygen is finally returning to the room and they can all breathe again. 

Zoro says, “You promise he’ll get in contact?”

“We’ll tell him as soon as we see him, yeah.” There’s the sound of creaking bedsprings, somebody on the other end of the line shifting, and then Sabo says, “Shit! Ace, that was my wrist- fuck, fuck, ow-”

“Fuck, Sabo, I didn’t-”

“It’s okay.” A hissing noise, like somebody sucking in air through their teeth. “It’s fine. It’s fine. I’m fine.”

Law steps closer to the phone. The whole room is looking on curiously now. “What’s wrong with your wrist, Sabo-ya?”

“Law?” Sabo hisses in pain again. “It’s not much. Blackbeard… kinda did a number on me. That’s all. I’ll heal up soon.”

“How did you even escape?” Nami asks. 

Ace snickers slightly. “Sabo kicked the asshole. Right in the balls. We managed to run while he was writhing in pain on the floor.”

“Whoa…”

“But he definitely didn’t hurt Cap?” Usopp asks. 

“No, definitely not. Only a few bruises, nothing more.” There’s a muffled noise, like somebody moving the phone in their hand. “Shit. The phone’s about to die.”

“We should go,” Ace says. “But yeah, Luffy’s fine. We’re fine. And we’ll be back in the city soon.”

“Alright,” Zoro says. “Bye.”

Ace and Sabo hang up, and it’s only then that they realise that Ace just said that they were outside of the city. 

 


	29. The Traitor

The week passes painfully slowly.

Sabo hates it here. There's no way around it. He hates it with everything he has, with every fibre inside of him. The people aren't necessarily  _bad_. They're far from it. They obviously care about Ace a hell of a lot, and Sabo appreciates that about them. But they're...nothing if not tactless. Careless. Willing to sit by and joke about the city, and bathe in their endless fortune without care for anybody less fortunate than them.

The person Sabo ends up spending a lot of time with, surprisingly, is Marco. He's been speaking to the guy for a long time, so they know one another anyway, and while Luffy spends time with Shanks and Ace gets to know his family again, Sabo and Marco often find themselves talking. Sabo learns quickly that Marco's the only one (aside from Ace, obviously) who ever really leaves Wakeshead. He's the only one here who seems to get just how bad things really are in the city. Suddenly, all the times he gave Sabo macs or showed him kindness - it all makes sense. Marco's the only person here who's even close to getting it… and even he doesn't get it completely.

Subconsciously, without really realising it, Sabo finds himself stealing.

It's just little things at first. A fork at the dining table. A cracker. A few coins, left on the floor somewhere. He notices Luffy doing it, too - and even, on occasion, Ace. Sabo figures that it must be instinct. Habit. It's always accompanied by that familiar feeling of being surrounded by wealth, fortune, that isn't yours. A survival instinct that Sabo doesn't even want to start analysing. Marco notices too - Sabo knows he does - but he doesn't really mention it. Sabo does catch him staring sadly at Ace when he steals a hunk of bread at dinner one night, though.

It's hard. Hard to adjust. Hard to get used to living like this. After living on the edge of poverty for so long… it's so goddamn strange to have access to all the food in the world, all the warmth, all the luxury. Blue skies for days. But Sabo… doesn't like it. Or want it. Right now, he wants anything but this. He can't wait to get away from this damned place and back to something real. He knows that if he was to try to live here for good… he wouldn't survive. This place is suffocating. He hates it. Hates it with every fibre of his being.

Sabo wanders through the days in something like a fever dream, head fuzzy, with the only brief moments of clarity being when he's alone with his brothers. But though both of them seem unhappy too, they both busy themselves (Ace spends them with Marco and Thatch and the rest of his family, and Luffy spends hours talking to Shanks) and Sabo is left mostly alone. He stays in their room and tries not to think very hard. Changes his bandages on a strict routine. Tries not to let the itch telling him that he has to leave get out of control.

It feels like it hasn't… sunk in yet. Some part of Sabo is sure that it's never going to. Luffy has found his family, and Ace has reunited with his, and some deep-rooted part of Sabo is scared that he's going to end up going back to the city alone. That both of them will be happy to stay here, while Sabo simply doesn't have a place in the equation. He knows that it's nonsense (and Ace and Luffy tell him so) but some doubt still remains, lurking in the back of his mind.

But at the very least, Sabo ends up managing to avoid the residents of Wakeshead for the majority of the time. He's glad for that. He feels uncomfortable around them, as though he's an outsider. So he stays mostly holed up upstairs, alone with his thoughts, enjoying the times when Ace and Luffy come up and they spend time together. He stays well out of the way of Ace's father, especially. Whitebeard. The dismissed regulator of their region. The creator of the Stacks.

That is, he stays out of the way until now.

A few days after their arrival, Sabo finally decides to venture downstairs, Ace and Luffy on either side of him. It's dinnertime and Ace's family are clustered in the dining room. The smell is somehow both intoxicating and sickening. Sabo hates it. He's already regretting leaving his room. And just to top all off, the only place where three seats are available next to one another is right beside…

"Ace! Son! Come, sit down."

Whitebeard's grating voice is loud. Luffy visibly tenses. Sabo is abruptly, for some reason, reminded of Blackbeard. All the same, they follow Ace across the room, taking their seats across from Edward Newgate. The man is large in a tall, bulky way (it's pretty obvious that he could snap Sabo in half if he wanted to) and he takes up two spaces at the table with one large chair. Even Ace, this man's son, seems a little uncomfortable sitting in his shadow.

"How are you?"

Ace grins. "I'm okay. How about you, Oyaji?"

"Just as good as always." The man sounds jovial. "And your…'brothers'?"

Sabo keeps his head down, trying not to bristle. The man doesn't mean it like that. He just doesn't understand. "We're fine, sir."

"Your name was…?"

"Sabo, sir."

"Sabo… how did you meet Ace?"

Ace shifts uncomfortably. "Oyaji, maybe this isn't the best idea-"

"We met through Ace's work." The lie comes out almost effortlessly. "And I managed to get Luffy out of a minor scrape, so all three of us became good friends. I lost my home last summer, so Ace and Luffy took me in."

"You three lived together?"

"We  _live_ together, yes, sir."

Whitebeard blinks. "You two are close to Ace, then."

"Yes, sir. Very."

"I…" A grin breaks out across Whitebeard's fatherly face. "So you two will be staying, too, then?"

"We actually needed to… have a word about that, Oyaji," Ace says, tentative. "About the future."

Newgate looks concerned. "What's bothering you, son?"

Ace takes a deep breath. "Sabo, Luffy and I… we might not stay here."

Whitebeard goes very still.

"And it's not because we don't appreciate everything you've done to help us," Ace rushes on, visibly nervous. "It's just, we've got lives back in the city. People we care about. Things to settle. And… I guess, my brothers are… uncomfortable here. And maybe I am, too. It's strange. It's just hard to adjust-"

"If your brothers don't like it, they can leave."

Sabo stiffens. There it is. There's a mounting panic beneath his skin. He should have known it would come to this.

Ace bristles. "We're not separating. No way in hell. Look, Oyaji, I'm glad to be back. I am. And all of you are my family and I care about you, I just… I've found new people. New people I care about."

"People you care about more than us?" Thatch asks, from across the table. He looks hurt. By now, people are staring, listening in. Sabo wants, desperately, to leave.

"No- I didn't mean it like that, I just-" Ace makes a noise of frustration. "I don't know what to do, okay, I-"

"Just tell us what you want, son." Whitebeard still sounds concerned, but his voice is harder.

"I don't know what I want. Okay? I don't know. I just… you know what, forget I said anything."

Thatch pesists. "Why would they be uncomfortable here?"

"It's just weird, okay?" Luffy says. "It's strange. It's hard to get used to it all-"

"But things are better here than in the city-" Thatch cuts himself off. "We just want Ace to be safe and happy, and if that means you two being safe and happy too, then we can do that. Just tell us what you need."

Sabo snaps.

His chair screeches as he stands up, abruptly. Whitebeard and Thatch both look at him, startled. He can feel that same infectious anger burning in his stomach, tearing at his insides, making his skin tingle. Sabo drops his cutlery onto his plate with a clatter and snaps, clearly, "You people don't know anything, do you?"

Ace puts a hand on his arm. "Sabo, wait-"

"No, let me speak." Sabo's voice comes out cold and angry, not sounding at all like his own. "You people are so out of touch that you'd rather stay cooped up here than even  _think_ about helping in the city? You're so self-absorbed that you don't even care about the hell right outside your fucking doors?!"

Newgate stands up. "If you don't like the way we run things, you can leave."

By now, the hall is silent. Sabo feels as though some part of him has been set on fire. Ace and Luffy are staring at him, the former with worry, the latter with an unreadable expression.

"It doesn't make any sense to me!" Sabo throws his arms up in frustration. "How can you just stay here, with so much food and so much wealth, while people starve to death out in the slums? While kids die every day because nobody gives a damn about them,  _including you?!_ "

"We have to care for our own. It seems cruel," Whitebeard says, slowly, "But it's the only way we've survived."

"You don't get it, do you, Newgate?!" Sabo stands as straight as he can, eyes narrowed, meeting the man's gaze. He can feel his fear melting away in the face of uncontrollable anger and frustration. "Your son has been out there for years, suffering. Constantly having to worry about starving to death. Living in poverty that you can't even fucking imagine. Do you seriously think anybody bothered to help him? Or his little brother? Even when you people obviously can, you can't be bothered to give a damn!"

"Ace is back with us now. And we're going to keep him safe." Whitebeard's voice is unyielding. "He doesn't have to worry about any of that anymore. We protect our own."

"You don't understand what I'm telling you, do you?" Sabo gestures to Ace. "He's not the only one. There are  _thousands_  of kids like Ace out there. Thousand of people starving every day. And you don't care? You can't even be bothered to try to make things better? You have the resources to help so, so many people, and you… just can't be bothered?"

"It's not as bad as you say it is. Trust me."

Sabo feels like he's reuniting Law for the first time all over again. He can feel his whole body tense up. There are stares on him everywhere. Sabo slams his fist down onto the table, rattling the plates and glasses on it. His knuckles sting.

"You want to know how bad it is? A week ago, the three of us had to hide in the same room for a  _week_ with no food, no water, no hope of sleeping. We were afraid for our lives for every goddamn second. We had to sit there and listen in silence as the woman living next door was tortured for hours - we listened to her screams. The family living above us were murdered and their blood dripped down the walls, and we just had to lie there, terrified, sure that we were about to fucking die."

Sabo is in his element now, every eye on him. He feels almost unable to stop. "It's not okay! Can't you see that?! It's never going to be okay! Not until somebody steps in and fights for the people! You talk about how much you care about Ace, but  _he went through that_. He suffered. And people like him, people like us, are suffering everyday because nobody cares." Sabo hears a pleading tone seep into his voice. "Can't you make yourselves care?!"

There's silence for a moment. Whitebeard looks grave. Whispers sweep up the long table, and Sabo stands, breathing heavily, jaw tight. He feels almost lightheaded, as though he's been punched in the mouth.

Whitebeard sighs. "Son… it's not that we don't care. We just can't start helping people outside of these walls. We can't risk putting our own people in danger-"

"Then you're not even half the man Ace is."

Whitebeard narrows his eyes. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Ace has spent years fighting and fighting to build a life for his younger brother. He cares about others before himself without question - he always has. He's selfless and he's been through so much shit for us and it's hard to believe that he came from a family inconsiderate, arrogant  _bastards_ like you."

Murmurs ripple up the long table. Somebody to Sabo's left stands up, protesting angrily. He ignores them. He and Whitebeard don't break eye contact.

After a moment, Whitebeard says, "I was regulator, a long time ago. And I know a hell of a lot more than you know about the state of the city. It's hard, but people aren't dying. It isn't hell."

"Didn't you hear him?! People die every day!" Luffy stands up too, at Sabo's side. It abruptly feels like it's the entire room against them two, the outsiders. Neither of them backs down. "Maybe they weren't bad years ago, I don't know, but they're bad now! One of my gang could be dyin' right now!"

For the first time, Whitebeard looks slightly conflicted. "Things can't be that bad…"

"All three of us have feared for our lives for  _years_." Sabo looks around, imploringly, trying to find somebody at the table who understands. "Ace was part of the fucking  _Blackbeards,_  he's had to fight and kill and steal just to stay off the streets. I've been working until I can't work anymore for years just to stay off the streets. Luffy's fifteen and he's in a gang, for fuck's sake, can't you understand it?!"

"Ace, you were…?"

For the first time, Ace stands up too, alongside his brothers. "Yes, pops. I was. And they're right. It's hell in the city. It's awful. And it's...not right to just do nothing while people suffer… I mean,  _Sabo_  nearly starved to death just a week ago. We're all in danger, constantly. Everybody is. Please, just…  _try_ to help."

For a moment, Sabo is sure that Whitebeard's going to shine that fatherly smile and agree. He's sure that everything is going to go to plan and Ace's family are going to be fine with them leaving and they're going to agree to help change things. His heart leaps-

And then falls.

"We… can't afford to do anything." Whitebeard sits back down. "We can't risk revealing that this place exists. It would be too risky, too much is on the line-"

Sabo shoves his chair and it topples over, crashing to the ground. "So that's it. You're just going to carry on the way you are."

"There's not much else we can do. We're not gathered here to be heroes, boy."

"You know what?! I'm done. I'm leaving."

Sabo turns on his heel and storms out of the room, ignoring the pain in his body as he makes sure not to stumble or limp. He doesn't look back, and when he slams the doors behind him, they make a satisfyingly loud noise. His mind is sharp with anger, thoughts erratic, and he doesn't stop until he reaches their room and throws the door shut behind him. Something in the door frame cracks with the impact.

Sabo sits down on the bed and puts his head into his hand. He breathes heavily for a while, just sitting still and letting the anger seep through him. He can feel his hand shaking, his arms - his whole body, eventually.

_What the fuck did I just do._

An immeasurable amount of time passes. Sabo tries to calm his breathing, internally trying to figure out how the hell he can get himself out of this mess. There's no doubt in his mind - they won't welcome him. He's sure of that. He'll have to leave. Abruptly, he feels like the most selfish person on earth - Ace and Luffy just found their family and they probably won't let Sabo go back alone. He's tearing them away from the people they love.

The door opens. Talk of the devil. Sabo braces himself.

"That was  _amazing_!"

He looks up, surprised. Luffy is beaming, standing in the doorway, and Ace is right behind him. "It was... Amazing?"

"Yeah, totally! You yelled and he looked really angry and you didn't stop and then- and then you looked  _so cool,_ that was badass!"

"He's right," Ace says. "You said all the right stuff. They just… don't take well to change."

"I'd noticed."

Ace steps in, closing the door behind him. "Alright. Plan. When are we leaving?"

"Wait, what?!"

"Did you really think we were gonna let you go without us?" Luffy laughs. "Nah. We're sticking together."

"But- but you two have family here, you don't need to leave because of me-"

" _You're_  family, too," Ace says, already rummaging through drawers, presumably to find things to pack. "And I love the people here, but… they're not my brothers. They're not you two."

"Yeah, same."

Slowly, Sabo nods. For once, a small part of him believes that they really aren't going to give up on him, like Law and the Outlooks and everybody in his life so far.

It's an amazing feeling.

They decide to leave tonight. Under the cover of darkness. It would be best not to tell anybody, because Ace has a sneaking suspicion that his family are going to attempt to keep him here. They don't want to create a fuss. Luffy sneaks off to tell Shanks, while Sabo and Ace stay behind, taking it in turns to grab food from the kitchens and stash it in a single backpack. They debate for a while how they're going to pull this off.

"We could just steal the jeep," Ace suggests.

"None of us can drive."

"We could...get Shanks to drive us?"

"Luffy says he can't drive either. Plus, we don't even know if he's coming with us yet."

"We could walk?"

"If you want to die, then sure. But I'd prefer to stay alive, thanks," Sabo says drily.

"Well, what do you suggest?"

At that moment, Luffy comes in, grinning. "I've got a plan!"

"Good timing - we need one." Sabo crosses his legs and gestures at Luffy to go on. "Explain?"

"Alright, basically, I was talking to Shanks. And Marco heard us and came in. And I thought he was gonna rat us out, but he gave this big talk and said he cares a lot about you and Sabo and he wants to do the 'right thing' and he agreed to take us! Shanks, too!"

Sabo and Ace exchange glances, and then Sabo grins and says, "We're really getting out of here."

"Are you sure Shanks'll be able to handle it, though?" Ace asks. "I mean, we're probably going to be looking for a place to stay for a while. Hiding from Blackbeard. Workin' with the hearts, the Strawhats. Will he be okay with it?"

Luffy wrinkles his nose. "That's kind of what I was worried about… I mean, he's gonna be totally not used to it. And he might do somethin' stupid and get hurt, because he doesn't know what it's like there."

"What're you saying? That you want to leave him behind?"

"I guess… I don't know. Maybe he can come with us after the war with the Blackbeards is over, or after everything's calmed down an' we've got someplace to stay and Blackbeard isn't looking for us anymore. I just don't want to take him there now, he won't be able to handle it."

For some reason, some tiny part of Sabo warms at the realisation that Luffy considers  _him_  tough enough to handle it.

"So, what're we gonna do? Have you tried telling Shanks?"

"He thinks he's gonna be fine. But, I dunno… I just got him back, I don't wanna lose him again 'cause of some gang war."

"I get what you mean," Sabo agrees. "Though, you're acting… smart, for once. Should I be worried?"

Luffy pouts. "Okay, so maybe Marco mentioned it to me. So I had help. Sue me!"

Sabo laughs, but Ace still looks like he's thinking hard. After a moment, he says, "There might be… one way to do it."

* * *

The sky is getting darker, gradually, when Luffy messages the crew at large, copying and pasting the same message to all of them. Zoro raises an eyebrow when he first gets it, feeling slightly relieved, and he and Nami meet up together only minutes later, in an alleyway only a few minutes away from the wreckage of the den.

"You got the message too?" Nami asks, without even saying hello.

"Yeah. Cap' and his brothers are going to be at Law's place by 2300. I got the memo." Zoro leans back against the wall. "It's about time. The situation with Blackbeard can't stay at a standstill for much longer than this."

"Yeah, tell me about it." Nami runs a hand through her hair, visibly stressed. The grey district is mostly empty at this time. Tense and quiet. The sky above is a dark, churning sea of grey. "We need Luffy around, and Ace could be useful information-wise. Sabo… well, something tells me he'll be on the same side as his brothers."

"Yeah, I think so. Have you spoken to Law?"

"Called him, just now. He seems kind relieved that they're alright, at least. I'm not even gonna ask when it comes to what the hell's going on between him and Ace."

Zoro hums. "And we know he and Sabo have history."

"It's too confusing to think about right now. Plus, we've got bigger problems." Nami sighs, glancing up and down the alleyway. "How's Chopper?"

"Not great. I mean, the meds are helping, but… I can't deny it. He's getting worse," Zoro says grimly. "I don't know, realistically, how long he's got."

Nami obviously doesn't know what to say. They stay quiet for a while, standing opposite one another in the damp, dark alleyway. The last few days have been rough. Scratch that - the last month. The last year. It's been… exhausting. And it's nowhere near over.

"How's Vivi?" Zoro asks Nami, just to change the subject.

"She's alright. Worried about Luffy. And I don't think she's completely over the fire-" Nami swallows. "She'll be okay."

"I hope so." Zoro pushes off the wall. "We should get to Law's. Regroup."

Before he's gotten more than a few footsteps, however, Nami says, "Wait."

Zoro turns around. "What?"

For a moment, Nami stares at him. Tension rattles through the air between them. The alleyway is silent, and both of them are tense. When Nami speaks, her words are clear on the thin, cold air.

"I know what you did."

"I don't know what you mean."

"Cut the bullshit."

Zoro stares at Nami for a moment. "You saw…?"

Nami crosses her arms across her chest. Her stance is like that of a person facing an enemy. "I saw," she agrees. "And it all makes sense. I understand now."

"Then you know why I did it. Why I sent those texts, as an alibi. Why I kept it from you guys for all this time."

Reluctantly, Nami nods. "I do. And I know it was necessary. And I know that it's over now, and you're on our side, and you've stopped. But… I can't trust you."

Zoro's expression is neutral. "Understandable."

"I just hope to god it doesn't get in the way." Nami steps forwards, jabs a finger into the centre of his chest. "Because this is war, Zoro. And whatever shit you used to do for him can't get in the way. All of our lives are on the line."

"I don't need you to tell me that."

"Then for fuck's sake, remember it." Nami turns away, strides towards the other end of the alleyway. "I'll meet you there."

Some small part of Zoro hurts. Nami refuses to even walk beside him. Before she rounds the corner out of sight, he calls after her, "You're still my people. All of you. And I'll do anything to keep my people safe. What I used to do… won't change that."

"I know." Nami shoots him a hard look over her shoulder. "But I still can't forget it. So stay away from me, stay away from my girlfriend, and stay away from Luffy. You've done enough when it comes to hurting him."

"You think I don't know that? You think I don't regret that?!"

"Oh, I think you regret it." Nami turns away. "But I know, to protect Chopper, you would do it all over again."

Zoro opens his mouth to reply but just like that, she's gone. He's left alone in the alley, with an empty, hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach. Nami's unspoken words ring on the air.

_You're the traitor._


	30. War Drums

It's tense in Law's base.

The Strawhats are clustered together in one corner of the kitchen, in a small huddle around one end of the table, and Law and Bepo are sat at the other end, silent. The heavy weight of tension is settled in the air. The clock ticks closer and closer to 2300 and Vivi is silent, weighed down by the anxiousness of the room. Nami won't look at her. Something happened - Vivi knows it - but Nami obviously isn't in the mood to share. Moonlight seeps through the window, catching on Trafalgar Law's hair in the dim, moody lighting of the room.

They're all so nervous, Vivi thinks, because once the brothers get here, it'll all be real. Luffy, the unofficial Strawhat leader, will be here. Ace, an ex-Blackbeard, will be here. Sabo, who apparently now harbours a new grudge towards Blackbeard, will be here. They'll all be pivotal in this war. And once they're here… there's no reason to hold the war off any longer. The temporary restraints of a standoff on the combat are straining. They won't hold for much longer. The brothers may be the last straw.

Zoro glances at the clock for the fifth time in the last minute. "They should be here soon."

Nobody answers him. It's painfully awkward. Nami checks her phone yet again, then glances up. Her eyes meet Vivi's for a moment and then they break eye contact, both looking away. Nami's upset about something. Vivi can tell; it's obvious. But she won't pry. They've got bigger issues right now. The tension is mounting, ramping up with each passing second. Vivi feels like she can't take it anymore-

Somebody knocks on the door.

For a moment, nobody moves. The whole room goes still. Then there's another knock - louder, more persistent than the first. Law half-stands, hand slipping to the dagger at his hip-

From outside, a familiar voice calls, "Hello? Anybody in?"

It's Ace. Law straightens fully and leaves the room, walking down the corridor. Vivi waits with bated breath as his footsteps pad up the hall and to the door. There's a moment of silence - then, the sound of a key being turned in a lock. Slowly, the front door creaks open. For a tense moment, there's no sound.

"Can we come in?" Sabo's voice asks, muffled.

"Are you alone?"

"Yes. We were meant to have a fourth person with us, but we… might have convinced our ride to leave him behind."

"Alright, just- yes. Come in." There are more footsteps, pairs of feet shuffling through the doorway. "You three are actually alive."

"Barely." Ace's voice again. "But yeah. We made it."

"Where are my crew?"

And  _there_  it is - Luffy's voice, echoing up the corridor towards them. He's actually here. He's  _alive_. At least half of their side of the table slump with relief.

"They're just through there, Strawhat-ya, but-"

Luffy obviously doesn't pay Law's protests any attention. There are footsteps, thumping back up the corridor towards the kitchen, and then Luffy comes into view, beaming widely. He looks scruffy still, but cleaner than Vivi can ever remember him looking. His skin is, for once, free from grime. The yellowish remains of a black eye linger on his face. He looks healthier than he has in a long time - Vivi could even say that he looks like he's put on a little weight, though he's still noticeably skinny.

"Luffy!" Usopp stands up. "You're here!"

"Yeah!" Luffy flashes a grin. "I missed you guys."

"Where've you been? And what happened?"

"Long story."

At that moment, both of Luffy's brothers come into view behind him. Ace looks unharmed besides a small bruise at his hairline, and like Luffy, he seems strangely clean. Sabo, however, looks like a mess. Both of his eyes are bruised to hell and his nose looks broken. There are bandages starting at the top of his chest and disappearing under his shirt and he's obviously limping, leaning slightly on Ace. Vivi remembers the first phone conversation and shivers. Blackbeard must have done a number on him.

"Hey," Ace says, awkwardly.

Luffy comes fully into the room and plops down between Zoro and Usopp, still grinning, amid a flurry of questions. He meets Vivi's eyes and she says, "We were worried."

"Sorry if I worried you. But I'm fine!"

Across the table, Nami opens her mouth to ask a question… and abruptly, her jaw drops. She stares wide-eyed past Luffy, to where his brothers are sitting at the other end of the table, and Vivi follows her gaze. For a moment, she doesn't see it. She sees Ace say hello to Bepo. She sees Sabo ease himself into a seat-

Then, her eyes fall onto his arm.

From the wrist down, Sabo's right hand is  _gone_. Bandages are wrapped around the stump of his wrist and as he rests it on the table, the rest of the Strawhats turn their heads to look too, looks of shock appearing on their faces. Sabo doesn't seem to notice them staring.

Vivi turns back to look at Luffy. "Blackbeard did  _that_?"

"Yeah." Luffy shifts uncomfortably. "It… wasn't good. But we're all okay. Sabo's okay."

Law sits back in his seat and coughs, getting everybody's attention. "Alright. We've got a lot to deal with, but first - where have you three been?"

Sabo, Ace and Luffy exchange glances. "Uh…"

"We can't exactly tell you," Ace says slowly. "I guess… we were safe. But we can't really say where."

"Why?"

"We can't tell you that either."

Zoro scowls. "Look, we were all worried, but there are bigger issues right now. Blackbeard. This stalemate won't hold for much longer - sooner or later, he's going to strike. And we're screwed unless we hit him first."

"What's the situation?"

"We officially allied with the hearts a few days ago - joined in on their war declaration. He's got eyes on us constantly. We can barely move around. Blackbeard is confident. He's waiting until we're off guard to strike, and his patience isn't going to last much longer. Right now, we're working on finding allies… it isn't going well."

"Who have you tried?"

Zoro grimaces. "That brings us onto more bad news. We tried to negotiate with Kidd and his thugs, but he openly allied with Blackbeard yesterday. It would be good for them if we were taken out. We should have expected this, but it doesn't make it any less worrying."

"Yeah, that's bad news. Have you tried anybody else?"

"Right now, most people are scared to even be seen meeting with us, so it's hard. Law's old mentor is going to be here - some old bigshot, but he's strong, so he should be able to help. Nami's sister is going to help, too, and whoever else we can get on board. The plan right now is to strike before they can - if we can launch an attack when they're not expecting it, and we play our cards right, we can end it before it's even began."

"But we're running out of time," Law cuts in, drumming his fingertips on the tabletop. "If we leave it too long and Blackbeard strikes first, we're dead. They trump us in pretty much every way - manpower, firepower, territory. We're screwed unless we play this right."

"What are our advantages?" Sabo rests his elbows on the table, and his bandaged wrist catches the light.

Law grins. "Tactics and motivation. Blackbeard is overconfident. He may be paranoid but at the end of the day, he sees himself and his people as unbeatable. He's dead wrong. I mean, Portgas, you have to have noticed it too - Blackbeard is strong, and he has a hell of a lot of people behind him, but his leadership…?"

"Is crap," Ace finishes. "Yeah. I get what you mean. If Blackbeard is taken out, there's nobody to take his place - the rest of his gang will dissolve, join others. There's no structure."

"And that means…?"

"We have to take out Blackbeard himself," finishes Sabo. "It sounds like it could work… if it wasn't impossible. I mean, the guy's practically invulnerable. He's one of the most well-defended men in the city. Sure, we could take it all down if he was dead, but how the hell do we manage that?"

"Stealth." Law stands up, starts pacing. Every eye on the room is on him. Even Luffy seems engrossed. "We have to do this quickly, so this plan has got to come together. Fast. Blackbeard is prideful - if we play it right, we can make that his downfall."

"Elaborate…?" Nami asks.

"We organise a distraction. A few of my crew and the Strawhats start a fire at his the largest of his downtown warehouses-"

"In the industrial district?" Ace raises an eyebrow. "That wouldn't help anything. There's pretty much nothing in that place - it's just a meeting space, a territory marker." He grimaces. "I know the place. The guy uses it to ' _train up'_ new recruits. He used it for me. What the hell would burning it down achieve?"

"You just said it - it's a territory marker. Blackbeard is an egotistical bastard and if somebody tried to burn down someplace that he used to show his power, he wouldn't be happy. Judging by how he operates, we can guess that he'll probably send in some of his strongest to neutralise the threat, and then turn up himself. And  _that's_ when we strike."

"How can you be sure?" Zoro asks. "If something goes wrong, some of my gang and some of yours are dead, and we've officially screwed ourselves."

"If we strike early tomorrow, before dawn, the chances are it'll be noticed quick - as far as I know, he's got a night patrol on the place. Let's say we strike at 3am. Blackbeard is travelling to the warehouse by half-past, max. By the time he gets there, some of his people have probably put the fire out, and he orders them to search for the culprits. And he's  _pissed,_  because somebody dared to disrespect his terf. He's angry as fuck and, mostly, he's alone."

"And we strike then?"

"Yes. But we have to carry it out perfectly. We have to time it so not many of his people are in the area when we take him on. It'll be at least ten on one. Even Blackbeard can't defend against that. If we keep him too busy to use his phone, he can't contact reinforcements. He'll be pissed and disorientated - the industrial district isn't his typical area, he won't know his way around too well. It'll be easy."

"Like shooting fish in a barrel." Ace stands up too, restless, leaning back against the table. "There are so many ifs. So many things that could go wrong."

Law raises an eyebrow. "Do you have a better idea? It's our best chance of getting him alone and fighting away from his home turf. And we don't exactly have time to plan something bigger than this. We have to do this now, before it's too late. Don't you agree?"

Ace scowls. "Yeah, yeah, I know. It's just… risky. Too risky. This is Blackbeard we're talking about."

Surprisingly, Luffy is the one who nods in agreement. "Yeah, Ace is right."

"Strawhat," Law acknowledges. "You've got a reputation. But I've never heard of you being afraid of risks."

"Neither of us were," Ace says darkly, "Until what happened last Friday."

There's an abrupt, awkward silence. Sabo glances across at Ace, then Luffy, and then looks down at the table. Eventually, he says, "Look. We can do this. It's just… Blackbeard's no joke. And we've got to be careful."

"We will be, Outlook-san," Robin says softly from across the table.

Sabo flinches. "It's Sabo. Please, just call me Sabo."

Law coughs pointedly. "Alright. So we strike at three. It's 2300 now - those of you who can should get some sleep, so you have energy for the fight. We meet here at 0200; be ready. Understood?"

"Aye," Ace says tiredly. He stands. "C'mon, Luffy. There's gotta be a bed in this place somewhere."

The group huddled around the table disperse, the Strawhats heading back to their new base to sleep and Ace and Luffy invading Law's room to get some sleep. Law seems not to care too much. Sabo decides to stay in the kitchen. He can't imagine sleeping right now. His veins feel like they've been set alight. The idea of seeing Blackbeard again, of fighting him, is both elating and terrifying.

Before Sabo realises what's happened, it's only him and Law seated in the kitchen. The silence is awkward but not tense. Sabo wonders whether he should say something. Law isn't looking at him, but Sabo still feels like he's being observed somehow.

Eventually, after a long stretch of silence, Law asks, "Should I check your wrist?"

It's what Sabo was least expecting him to say. He blinks, then shakes his head. "Uh...no. It's okay. Thanks, though."

"Blackbeard did it?"

"Yeah. It was injured already, but… yeah."

"I'm-" Law cuts himself off. "Y'know, I'm going to go-"

He stands to leave, but as he passes, Sabo catches his wrist. "Wait. We've… got to talk. About everything."

"What is there to talk about?" Law pulls his wrist free but sits back down anyway.

Sabo coughs around the lump in his throat. Folds and unfolds his arms. Takes a deep, shaky breath. "I guess, I wanted to say… I'm not angry with you."

Law actually looks caught off guard. "...What?"

"I was angry with you for a long time." Sabo glances to the side, looking out of the small window, out onto the street. "For two years. I hated you. There were days when I wanted to kill you. But… I buried it. Ignored it. Pushed my anger away. And I guess… by now, I know why you did it. I know you were just trying to protect Lami. I know you did it for family."

Law stays silent for a while. "It… got out of hand. Maybe I wanted you dead, maybe I didn't, I don't know. But… it ended up with my crew scared of me and my… friend gone. And my father."

"I don't think I can forgive you," Sabo says truthfully. "But… I can try. Because I guess I've found my family now, too."

Law nods. There's something about this that feels almost like making peace. "Lami missed you. The whole time, since you first left. I think she blamed me but she never said it."

"I missed her, too." Sabo smiles softly. "And Bepo and Cora and the others. And you. I missed my old life, I guess. But… there's no way I can get it back. And I'm happy where I am now, because I've found my people. And that's enough for me."

"I never stopped regretting it." Law rubs his face tiredly. "The fire, I mean."

"Well… I know I have," Sabo settles on saying. Abruptly, he stands. "If you'll excuse me - I'm gonna find my brothers. I'll see you in a few hours."

"Yeah. Goodnight."

"'Night."

Sabo leaves with a small smile on his face, some of the weight laying heavy on his chest lifting for the first time in a long, long time.

* * *

By the time Sabo walks in, Ace is asleep. Luffy shifts up on the bed to make room for him to sit down. Law's room is messy and disorganised, papers and notes and clothes strewn everywhere. Sabo settles down, crossing his legs and sighing as he leans back against the wall. He's smiling.

"How's Traffic?"

" _Law_  is alright. We talked. Sorted some stuff out."

"That's good." Luffy yawns, shuffling downwards and shifting his head to rest on Sabo's leg. "We're really gonna fight him."

"Yeah."

"Are you scared?"

Sabo seems to think for a minute. "Not really. It's not like he can do much worse."

"You're not a good liar," Luffy comments blithely.

Sabo sighs, closing his eyes. "I guess you're right."

"What are you scared of?"

"It's not that I'm… scared," Sabo replies after a moment. "I'm not scared of what he'll do to me. I'm just scared that something'll happen, something'll go wrong, and… it'll happen to you. Or Ace. And I'll be the one watching. To me, that sounds like worse torture than anything he did to me that night."

Luffy wrinkles his nose. "It's gonna be fine."

"I know, I know. I think too much."

"You really do."

Beside them, Ace shifts a little in his sleep, snuffling into the covers. Sabo and Luffy stay quiet for a while. Outside, the night wears on - the city is awake, the world is still turning, everything is as it always has been. Sabo marvels for a moment that they're even back here at all. They might be trapped by Blackbeard and the war and gangs, but he feels a lot more free here, with his brothers, than he did back in Wakeshead. It's cold and dangerous outside… but in here, it's definitely warm.

"I'm glad we left," says Luffy, after a while. "Really glad. It sucks back there."

"I know. And I'm glad, too."

"We're gonna be free soon."

Sabo looks away. "Let's just hope it goes well. By the way, do you still not feel bad about the whole thing with Shanks? I mean, it was kinda underhanded."

Luffy snickers. "Nah. Shanks won't mind that much either. It's just so he doesn't, like, die or anything. And Marco was fine with taking us without him."

"Yeah, well, Marco's the only decent one there," Sabo mutters. "Anyway. We should probably sleep, get our energy up for the ambush. The quicker we get all of this over, the better. The quicker he's dead, the quicker we can get back to how things were before."

Luffy stays silent at that for some reason, shifting to curl up, head in Sabo's lap. "G'night, Sabo. G'night, Ace."

"Night, Luffy."

Even as Luffy drops off to sleep, he knows that Sabo isn't going to fall asleep.

* * *

Three hours later, Ace wakes up surprisingly alert, shaking away the lingering fatigue as he pulls himself and Luffy out of bed and traipses back up the corridor behind Sabo. The clock on the wall hits 0200 just as they reenter the kitchen and take their seats at the table. Ace rubs his eyes, feeling more awake by the second as the thrill that comes before a fight begins to seep through him. This is the night.

Nami's sister is already here - Nojiko, her name is. She works at the conveyor with Sabo and the pair of them exchange a few words upon seeing one another. It's obvious that though they get along, now isn't the ideal time for a conversation. The whole room is tense, almost frigid. Anticipatory. The Strawhats file in and cram up together on one end of the table, Luffy in their centre, and Ace and Sabo lean against a wall side by side as the hearts take up the other end of the table.

"Alright." Law calls for attention once the room is full. "Rayleigh-ya, my old mentor, has eyes on Blackbeard's base. Blackbeard is currently exactly where we need him to be. Rayleigh is strong, so he's playing backup - if for some reason, Blackbeard strays off-path, Raleigh will stop him."

"And you trust this guy?" Usopp asks uncertainly.

"Definitely. Okay, let's get down to business." Law's eyes flit through the room for a few seconds. "Strawhat - who in your gang is most experienced with explosives?"

"That's me, bro," Franky speaks up.

"Ace is good with fire, though!" Luffy speaks up.

"You are?"

"I am," Ace says, reluctantly. "Blackbeard used to make good use of that. But listen, I'd rather stay with my br-"

Law completely ignores him. "So Franky, Portgas-ya, Shachi and a few more of my crew can start the fire. Make it as… loud as you can, if you catch my drift. Attract attention. Get him angry."

Law spends a minute or so picking members of his expansive crew (nearly twenty young people) while Ace stares on, disgruntled. "You just got ignored," Sabo tells him.

"I'd noticed."

From within the group of Strawhats, Luffy grins cheekily at Ace. Ace flips him off.

Law finishes choosing his people. "Alright. So the group I just chose - you should head off. Now. By the time you get to the industrial district, it should be about time."

Ace raises his eyebrows. "Won't we need, y'know, gasoline? Explosives?"

Rolling his eyes, Law points towards the door. "Basement. Bepo'll show you."

As the group leaves the room, Ace lags behind for a minute. "Look, are you sure it's necessary for me to be with them-"

Law looks unimpressed. "Your brothers will be fine."

"That's not what I'm worried about"

"Then why don't you want to go with them?"

Ace bites his lip, then turns to Sabo and Luffy. "Stay safe. I'll be with you two as soon as I can."

"We'll be fine." Sabo grins. "See you on the other side."

"Bye, Ace!" Luffy grins.

Ace hesitates for a moment more and then, with one last warning look at Law, he strides out of the room and after his designated group. Sabo watches him leave.

Law turns back towards the assembled gang members. "Alright. There are dozens of us here, and all of us are somewhat strong. It  _should_ go perfectly smoothly. But, if things go sideways and we end up separated, or overwhelmed, we meet back here before it starts to get light. Do you understand?"

There are nods around the room. Nerves boil and writhe in Sabo's stomach. He feels sick - somehow both nauseous and perfectly clear-headed. He can't tell whether he's excited or scared, and he decides that he doesn't care.

"Okay." Law takes a deep breath. "We leave in twenty minutes. Don't screw this up. This is our one and only chance to end this without taking ourselves down with them."

Law sits down, with his crew. Ace is gone. Luffy and the Strawhats are huddled together, talking, and Sabo doesn't join them, instead staying leant against the wall alone, wondering internally whether the next few hours are going to be his last.


	31. Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY FOR SUCH A SHORT CHAPTER ORZZZZ   
> ugh I'm gonna go di e no w

The minutes pass slowly after Ace's group leaves. The Strawhats and the hearts remain in their small groups and Sabo distances himself from them, staying at the other side of the room. He doesn't feel like he belongs here. Eventually, as the clock sneaks at a snail's pace towards 0230, Law stands up. "Alright. We should set off soon. The first group should be arriving at the warehouse right about now."

Sabo stands, too. "Okay. To the industrial district, then?"

"Yes." Law eyes him. "How are you going to fight?"

Sabo blinks. It hadn't hit him until now. The fight won't be long, nor difficult, if everything goes to plan… but he has to be prepared for anything.

He thinks for a moment. While not nearly as competent as somebody like Ace, Sabo can fight; he would have died a long time ago if he couldn't. Though he's hardly physically imposing, he's pretty sure he can make up for it in experience. He used to have a pipe, he remembers, stored in his trailer - to defend from unwanted visitors. It was well-used. Sabo finds himself wishing that he had it now, even though he knows that it must have been destroyed in the explosion. He knew how to fight with _that_. But still…

"Do you have a pipe?" Sabo ventures.

Law raises an eyebrow at him. "Unusual weapon of choice."

"I know. But do you have one?"

"There should be a few down in the basement, I can show you where it is-"

"I remember how to get down there," Sabo says awkwardly. Then, "Thanks."

Down in the basement, it's just as cold and damp as it always used to be. Sabo picks his way through the clutter; there are knickknacks everywhere, weapons and machinery and sealed boxes of everything from macs to drugs to scrap steel. Sabo has to duck just so as not to bang his head on the low ceiling. In a place like this, after losing his hand, he feels even more unbalanced. The lighting is dim, the air thick and filled with dust, and he resists the urge to cough.

After a few minutes of feeling through the darkness, Sabo finally finds them - there are a dozen or so steel pipes propped up against the back wall of the damp room. He weighs a few of them in his hand, feels their steadying weight in his grip, takes a few testing swings to get a feel for their length. Eventually, he settles on the one that feels the closest to his old one; heavy, but thin enough to be able to maneuver properly and just the right length. The end is welded with a heavy, painful-looking metal rivet. He feels comfortable with it. Sabo thanks his lucky stars that he can fight with both hands. His ambidexterity is an invaluable asset.

Sabo starts back towards the door, shouldering his new pipe. Before he can reach it, however, something across the room catches his eye. Among a pile of cardboard boxes stacked against the wall, one is labeled in black marker with a name that makes Sabo's breath hitch. _Corazon._

The box is unremarkable - obviously old, it's held together by what is most likely duct tape and pure will power. For a moment, Sabo considers going across and opening iit. A wave of curiosity, mixed with a strange, sudden desire to _know_ rushes over him.

...But he can't do it. Not now. There will be time once this is all over, once they're all free.

For now, he has a job to do.

Luffy's voice calls from the top of the stairs. "Sabo?"

"Coming!"

Sabo doesn't look over his shoulder as he leaves, pounding up the stairs and into the hallway. Luffy grins at him. From the cluster around the door, Law clears his throat. "Alright. Let's set off, then."

"Aye."

Sabo is hit with a rush of cold night air as the front door opens. The hearts file out, then the Strawhats, and finally Sabo and Law. It's a cold night out on the street, the air bitter with December chill. The wind has picked up and it whistles through the empty streets ominously. Sabo shivers and tries not to take it as an omen.

"Okay." Law closes the door behind him. "Let's go."

Sabo tightens his grip on his pipe, pressing the metal against his shoulder, and follows the group in silence. His body is still aching from Blackbeard's beating, and he feels physically exhausted due to all the sleep he's been missing. Nightmares are… hard to deal with. He can feel his heart pounding very hard and very fast and internally, he wishes Ace good luck. Some small, dark part of him wonders if he's ever going to see Ace again, but he forces the paranoia from his mind. This is going to be fine. This is going to be just fine.

And, silent, the group continue to march into the night.

* * *

Ace feels a strange rush as he sloshes gasoline onto the roof of the warehouse, the distinctive smell of the stuff sharp on the night air. His fingers are so cold that they're numb and stinging. It's freezing up here, the air sharp. The wind buffets loud in his ears. Up here, in the cold and the gusts of the latest hour, Ace feels incredibly alive.

"Portgas?" Franky's voice shouts from far below. "Are you done up there?"

"Yeah. We ready to light it up?"

"Lemme check." There's a pause - probably the man checking his phone or his watch. "Alright. We're a-go. And remember, once the fire gets down to the second level, it'll start to set off some of my explosives. So we just have to keep it burning until then."

"Gotcha."

Ace stands up straight, near the edge of the roof. The wind blows his hair back. Abruptly, standing there with a box of matchsticks in his hand, he feels surreal. The city skyline stretches for miles around. The sky is clear and even from here, he can make out the monstrous silhouettes of the Stacks in the distance, black against the night sky as they stretch up and up and up into the clouds. Ace steadies his hands - they're trembling slightly with the cold - and strikes a match.

For a moment, he holds it out in front of him, staring into the fire, almost mesmerised by it. The flames stand out against the night sky like a beacon. Ace breathes in the smoke and exhales, breath steaming up the night air. The fire burns down the matchstick, leaving behind blackened, ashy remains until the flames are close to his fingertips.

Taking a deep breath, Ace throws the match. It arcs through the air, burning brightly, and hits the roof ten feet or so away. Immediately, the gasoline does its work - flames burst to life across the metal, heat rippling across the roof like a wave. For a moment, Ace can't make himself move. His veins thrum with energy as the fire spreads outwards, eating away at metal, smoke already beginning to pour into the sky.

Ace steps back, straightening his leather jacket on his shoulders, and then turns and dives off the flaming roof.

Air rushes past him, wind threading through his hair and his clothes and his face is cold, raw and blasted back by wind as he free falls. A incoherent yell escapes his throat, of adrenaline and stifled fear and a hint of excitement. Only a few feet from the ground, back hot with the intensity of the flames above, Ace spreads his wings to break his fall. He lands and rolls, knees hitting the concrete hard enough to make his body jolt, ending crouched near Franky, who's watching the fire from behind a nearby storage unit. Ace slips in beside him, watching too. They exchange grins.

The fire spreads quickly. The warehouse is soon lit up like a beacon, the crackling, dancing flames setting shadows onto the ground all around. This blaze should be able to be seen for miles from any direction. The ground is hot and Ace's skin burns with anticipation. Surely the blaze has been noticed by now. Surely Blackbeard has been notified.

Franky checks his phone. "Cap says they've set off. Everything's gone to plan so far."

"Yeah, well, let's hope it stays that way." Ace grips the handle of his dagger. "Reckon it's been seen?"

At that very moment, as if on cue, a figure sprints into view in front of the warehouse. Ace and Franky slip further behind the storage unit and watch. The person stands for a minute, breathing hard and staring into the flames, and then they grab from their pocket a mobile phone. Ace keeps very still and very quiet as the stranger dials and then holds the phone to their ear, silhouetted in the flames eating away at the roof of the warehouse.

After a few moments, their trembling voice speaks. "Yeah, boss, 'm at the warehouse. Somebody's- no, sorry boss, sorry-"

It's obvious that Blackbeard isn't in the best of moods. Good. The whole point of the plan is to catch him off guard and if he's preoccupied, it'll be that much easier.

"Yeah, it's- oh, they already called? I- I'm so sorry, boss, I didn't-"

The stranger goes very still all of a sudden. Then, glancing around in an apparent sudden fit of paranoia, he says, "Alright, boss, got it."

The phone call evidently ends there. Blackbeard's goon pockets his phone again, still looking around, and then turns and sprints away down a sidestreet and out of sight. Silence falls once again, but for the crackling of flames and Ace's heart pounding hard in his chest. A few flaming slats fall from the roof and to the ground far below, bringing with them the stench of gasoline. It fills Ace's lungs like an infection.

"So he's on his way, then."

Franky nods. "You ready for this, bro?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Ace stays in a tightly coiled crouch, ready to spring to his feet, even as his legs begin to burn. "You?"

"Yeah. Just hopin' we'll all pull through."

Franky has a distinct accent. Ace finds himself noticing it now - it's the strangest time, but the fact leaps out at him and he grasps onto it. The accent reminds him, definitely, of the industrial district - or, rather, the people of the metalworks. The lower end of downtown. He evidently comes from somewhere around here. Ace glances across at him- and then, he sees it.

Franky looks relatively ordinary in appearance, but for one thing. He's got a metal arm.

Ace's heart leaps for a second, for a reason he can't put his finger on. He stares at the well-crafted metal appendage, steel plates lit up coppery gold in the firelight, and then it hits him. He knows somebody else who's missing a hand. Ace sits up a little straighter, eyes trained on the arm, and Franky looks at him.

"Who made the arm?"

Franky blinks. "I did. After an accident, few years back. Why?"

"After all this is over, if I paid… would you be willing to make something like it again? For somebody I know?"

Franky looks at him strangely. "Yeah, probably, but why-" It hits him. "Oh. The blonde guy."

"Sabo, yeah. So if we both make it out alive, it's a deal?"

Frank thinks for a moment, then grins and shakes his outstretched hand. "Deal. Though, it's not exactly a nice thing to go through…"

"Not much of Sabo's life has been," Ace says drily. _If only he knew_. "I'm sure he won't mind, trust me."

"Well, if we make it through, I can do it." Franky turns back towards the burning warehouse. "Let's just hope we manage that."

"Yeah," Ace chuckles, turning back to face the fire, abruptly feeling a lot less nervous. "Thank you."

"No problem."

Ace settles back, ready to wait it out. His mind stays on his brothers and for once, he doesn't try to push thoughts of them away. Some part of him - whether instinct or delusion, he can't tell - tells him that somehow, this whole mess is going to end up alright.

* * *

Marco pulls in in front of Wakeshead, the jeep rumbling to a halt in the darkness of the shadowed drive. High above, the sky is clear and dark, and anticipation stirs within him as as climbs out, slams the door behind him and starts towards the hall entrance. The night air is cold and biting. He approaches the doors and ,taking a deep breath, unlocks them and steps inside.

For a moment, his head leaps - there's nobody in the hall. Confrontation can wait until later. Then, just as quickly, his spirits fall. Shanks might still be awake, or waking, only now realising that they didn't wake him as they said he would. Right at this very second, he could be realising that he was left behind. And the conversation that will follow that realisation isn't going to be fun.

Bizarrely, as he treks up the marble staircase, Marcoo finds his mind flitting back to Ace, Sabo and Luffy. They explained the situation to him in the jeep, on the way back to the city, and his mind his still buzzing with it. A _gang war_. If it hadn't been Sabo, Ace and Luffy who had told him, Marco might not have believed it. As it is, he's starting to get used to those three defying any and all expectations they're faced with whenever possible. Eventually, he wonders, will they stop shocking him at all? Well...

No. Probably not.

That train of thought leads Marco onto an even more depressing one, as he finds himself wondering whether he'll be able to be shocked by them ever again anyway. Whether he'll be able to talk to them again, to see Ace's face again. Whether they'll even live long enough to come back to Wakeshead at all. After all, gang wars aren't a joke. They aren't easy. They aren't forgiving. And god knows Blackbeard isn't, either.

If all of the brothers make it out with their lives, Marco will count it as a near miracle.

At the top of the stairs, there's nobody on the landing. The whole building is very, very still. Marco wanders in the direction of his room, assuming that Shanks is still asleep, but his feet end up carrying him in a different direction. He creeps through the halls, not paying much mind to where he is, until he ends up in front of Sabo's old room.

For a moment, he stares at the wooden door, unsure as to why he came here. There's a strange desire within him - curiosity, maybe - that begs that he open the door. Marco stands there, stock still for a moment more, before reaching across and twisting the doorknob.

Inside, the lamp beside the bed is still on. Sabo obviously forgot to turn it off, and it casts a warm, red-gold glow over everything. The curtains are open and Marco stares out into the blackness for a moment, seeing his own reflection stare back, silhouetted in the lamplight. After a moment, he looks away, taking in instead the bed. The covers are stripped off it, evidently contributing to the huge pile of blankets and pillows on the floor across the room. Marco moves across, nudges the pile with his toe, and realises with a jolt that this must be where the boys were sleeping.

Against his will, and for reasons he can't name, a rush of guilt wells up inside of Marco. He feels an abrupt abundance of sympathy for the brothers, who were torn from their home by violence and forced to stay in a place where they were so obviously unhappy, where two of them must have felt utterly friendless. He can't get the image out of his head of the three of them huddling in here, locking the door and hiding away from the rest of the family, unable to sleep on beds that must have been alien to them.

Marco feels like shit.

At that moment, Marco decides it - he knows what he's going to do when the rest of his family start to wake up. He's going to tell them why the brothers left, and how uncomfortable they made them, and how maybe they could have shown some tact. He's going to tell them about the gangs, and about the fear, and about what people in the city are going through. He's going to try to listen to what Sabo had to say, and he's going to try to repeat it.

Marco is going to try to change the ways of people who haven't changed in over five decades.

The idea of him scares him slightly, but he finds that he feels like he has to do this. Because if Ace survives, if he comes back, the only way they're going to keep from driving him away again is if they change their ways. And god knows Marco doesn't want to drive him away, not again, not now that they just got him back.

Marco leaves the room with a new determination.

* * *

Koala bursts into the room without bothering to knock. "Dragon! Sir, we think it's started."

Dragon stands smoothly from his chair. "Blackbeard has struck?"

"No." Koala shakes her head grimly, approaching him. "The hearts and the Strawhats have attacked one of his larger bases. Set it on fire. Ace Portgas has been spotted."

"And you're sure it's an act of war?"

"Yes, sir. Trafalgar Law is apparently on the move as well."

Dragon begins to pace behind his desk. "Has Blackbeard been spotted yet?"

"No, sir, but we're expecting him to leave his base soon." Koala puts a file on his desk "As far as we know, this is everybody involved."

Dragon glances at the file. "Tell me more about the Strawhats. I know little about them. Are they known enemies?"

"No, sir. They're a small gang without many connections. Happens to be run by Portgas' younger brother, actually - some kid called Luffy-"

Dragon freezes. "What?"

"Luffy. He's just a kid, fifteen or sixteen, we don't know much about him."

Dragon doesn't move for a long moment. He can feel Koala's worried gaze on him. After a few seconds, he says, "Okay. Okay. I can deal with that later. So the Strawhats are neutral to us. The hearts?"

"A few prior dealings with us, but nothing bad. They wouldn't attack us - they have no reason to." Koala's eyes are shining. "Sir, this could be our chance. Blackbeard would be weakened. And if we could get him and his crew out of the way-"

"I know."

"What should I tell them? Am I issuing orders?"

Dragon considers, then nods. "Assemble everybody you can. Tonight, we take action. Oh, and, Koala?"

Near the door, Koala stops, turning back to him. "Yes, sir?"

"Issue orders that the leader of the strawhats is to be protected at all costs. Do you understand?"

Koala raises an eyebrow but nods. "Yes, sir. Anything else?"

For the first time, Dragon cracks a grin. "I give you permission to reveal yourself to Sabo Outlook. We know he'll be there if Portgas is there. And I know that you used to know him."

Koala beams. "Thank you, sir!"

"It's not a problem. Now, go." Dragon turns back towards the wide window behind him, looking out over the city. As the door closes behind Koala, he says under his breath, "Well, Luffy. Look where you ended up."


	32. A Brand New World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LISTEN UP PEEPS
> 
> Okay, on a whim… i changed something about the story. And the change is in this chapter. And if you dont like it, that's cool, but don't flip on me. Because i guess as my friend told me… this is my work, it's my decision, i just hope you enjoy it. I know i am.
> 
> Love you all!

****The burning warehouse is visible from a mile away, pouring acrid, reddish-orange smoke into the sky. Against his will, Sabo thinks, for a split second, of Bluetown. The flames tearing into the metal of the warehouse roof are too bright, burning at his irises, and he tries not to look at them as he, Law and the others spread out around the burning building. The Strawhats dot the roofs of the buildings around, pulled into alcoves and window frames, staring down at the blaze as the hearts hide themselves, too. Sabo stands for a moment, unsure of where to go, before spotting Ace and darting through the shadows towards him.

When he puts a hand on his shoulder, Ace flinches and whirls around. “You guys are here already?”

“Yeah, we made good pace. Everything went well for you?”

“Yeah. There are explosives in the warehouse - if the blaze carries on for long enough, they’ll explode and take out the whole thing.”

Ace shifts over, allowing Sabo to crouch beside him, and they stare into the fire side-by-side, arms touching. From across the street, Luffy grins at them from the doorway of another warehouse, half obscured in shadows. Sabo feels electrified inside and out, skin burning in the heat of the flames, and he breathes in deep lungfuls of smoky air. His weapon feels hot against his shoulder.

Ace stares. “You got a pipe?”

“Yeah. I can fight with it - I’ve done it before.”

“Are you sure you can fight at all?”

Sabo raises an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you got beaten into the goddamn ground last week. You’re hardly in perfect condition.”

“I’ll be fine,” Sabo says flippantly, even as his ribs give a small twinge. “This isn’t going to be a long fight. We take the bastard down, and then we get the hell out of here. That’s all, if everything goes to plan.”

“And if everything doesn’t?”

“We can burn that bridge when we get to it.”

Ace snorts. “Y’know, this is why when people say you’re the sensible one, I think they’re insane.”

“Who’s ever said that?”

“Marco said it back in Wakeshead, and Franky when we were on our way here.”

Sabo laughs softly. “Well, I don’t know what gave them that impression.”

“Yeah, me neither.”

They exchange small grins and then turn back to the fire. Blackbeard should be here soon. It’s really happening. They’re really doing this. Sabo can still hardly believe it. He feels the abrupt urge to say something to Ace - something important, that it feels like he’s been putting of for a while somehow - but he can’t quite put his finger on what it is. Eventually, he decides to say nothing, continuing to stare into the flames. Any second now. Blackbeard is coming - Sabo can feel it.

The minutes trickle by. Whatever Sabo had wanted to say dies, drifts away like smoke on the wind, and he doesn’t pursue it, knowing that they’ve got bigger problems. After all this is over, he finds himself wondering bizarrely, what then? Will they go back to Wakeshead? Or the apartment? Or will they leave the city altogether, in search of a new life, free from Blackbeard and the Whitebeards and everybody else? Sabo finds that he doesn’t know, can’t even fabricate the faintest idea. Any future he imagines only has one distinct trait - Ace and Luffy are there. Sabo wonders whether they feel the same way when _they_ think about the future.

Suddenly, there’s movement.

Sabo freezes up, heart pounding in his chest like war drums. A figure strolls into the light from across the street, lumbering, with a heavy set form and a hunched back and a fierce scowl on his face. He looks exactly as he did on that night only a week ago. Blackbeard’s yellow teeth, the discolored whites of his eyes, glint in the firelight. He doesn’t look happy - on the contrary, he seems almost deranged, so angry that Sabo can see it in his frame and his face even from here.

Ace grabs Sabo’s shoulder and reminds him, in a whisper nearly drowned out by the crackling of flames, “ _Breathe_.”

Every eye is glued to Blackbeard as he makes his way, painfully slowly, into the centre of the empty space in front of the warehouse. He stares up at it, huge form blocking out a patch of light, and Sabo shivers, trying to shove back his fear.

After a moment, Blackbeard turns around and reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a phone-

_Now is our chance. Our only chance._

_We can’t let him call for reinforcements._

Sabo forces himself to his feet. He can feel the fear so thick in his throat that it might choke him. His hands are trembling, and his shoulders - he feels as though the terror has infected everything right down to his bones. But he shoves it back, pushes the memories and the anguish into a box and locks it. Ace tries to grab his arm, makes a small noise of protest-

Sabo steps into the light, pipe on his shoulder. “Oi.”

Blackbeard looks up and his face breaks with shock. For a moment, Sabo thinks anger is going to take over, and then instead it’s _amusement_ that obscures Blackbeard’s expression as the man begins to laugh. The sound is disturbing - humourless and malicious, it echoes through the street, and every inch of Sabo wants to run.

He stands his ground.

Blackbeard laughs for a long time - an unusually long time, in fact, until at last his chuckles die out and he’s left, staring Sabo up and down, looking at the damage that he caused on that night. After a moment, the bastard says, “You’re alive.”

“I am.”

“And you’ve still got the nerve to face me?”

“I have.”

It feels like only they exist in the universe for a moment. Sabo stares into Blackbeard’s face, his bulky form as it’s shrouded by the flames behind him, and feels the heat on his skin as his pulse begins to rush. The phone is still in Blackbeard’s meaty fist. They need to attack before he can place a call.

Suddenly, something small and icy cold hits the end of Sabo’s nose. He realises with a thrill of dread what it is - _rain_.

Blackbeard seems to realise what it is. He takes a step towards Sabo and Sabo desperately resists the urge to run, insides curling up with panic. Then, suddenly, Ace is there, at his side. Blackbeard’s attention turns abruptly to him.

“Blackbeard,” Ace says grimly.

“Not ‘boss’ anymore, Ace?” Blackbeard leers.

“No. Not anymore.”

Blackbeard takes another step, hand moving to put his phone back in his pocket, and then there’s movement to their right. Then Luffy is sprinting across to them, skidding to a stop on Sabo’s other side, and the three of them stand side by side and face Blackbeard and Sabo feels his fear melting away. They’re here with him. He’s unafraid. Blackbeard is the one who should be afraid.

Then suddenly Law is there too, hand on his sword, and then more and more figures begin to melt from the darkness all around them to join the group facing off Blackbeard. Hearts and Strawhats alike cluster around the brothers, hands on weapons, facing the fire even as rain begins to pour down. Blackbeard’s grin turns into a scowl of rage.

The rain picks up. Sabo swings his pipe down from his shoulder and points it at Blackbeard, feeling rain hitting his hair, as the fire begins to sizzle and crackle and die. “This is it. You’re defenseless.”

Suddenly, the most disconcerting thing happens.

Blackbeard looks _behind Sabo_ , past him, and says, “Are you sure?”

Sabo whirls around. There are a group of people in the shadows, beyond the firelight’s reach, and he can’t believe he didn’t notice them before. They’re clustered in the shade of a building where they must have not been only seconds before, and Sabo can see weapons in their midst - guns and swords and knives. And the person at their head-

“Kidd,” Law growls. “Why are you here?”

Kidd laughs cruelly. “Aw, c’mon, Trafalgar. You were givin’ me hell about allying with Blackbeard. You know I fight for his side.”

“Maybe, but why are you here now?” Law sounds like he’s only now realising that his plan is falling apart.

“You really think we didn’t know?” Blackbeard speaks again. Sabo feels abruptly trapped, between Blackbeard and this gang he doesn’t know, caught between trying to look at one and the other. “We knew the second Portgas and his brothers came back into the city, you stupid weakling. The fire just told us exactly what your plan was.”

Law swears under his breath. Ace looks like he’s thinking, hard, eyes darting. The fire that once engulfed the warehouse is dying more with each passing second. Sabo is finding it hard to breath through the smoke and the rain and the crushing fear.

There’s no declaration of combat. No formality. Somebody - Vivi, maybe - shifts a little-

And then Kidd lunges forwards and they’re all fighting, so suddenly that for a moment Sabo has no idea where he is and what he’s doing and what’s happening. Somebody wrenches him away from Ace and Luffy and grabs his pipe, trying to wrestle it from his grip, and he bursts into action, swinging hard at their head. There’s a crunch and they fall, and Sabo doesn’t bother to look at them, because then there’s somebody else - a man with a baseball bat, aiming at Sabo’s head - and he raises his pipe and guards, forced onto the defensive as the bat hits metal with a horrible _clang_.

Somewhere to his left, Ace yells - the sound is pained. Sabo glances to the side, trying to see him, and the distraction costs him. The bat swings again and something hits Sabo’s temple and he sees stars, reeling backwards as something wet and sticky splatters down across his jaw. He’s disorientated for a second, but only a second, and then the man with the bat comes for him again. This time, Sabo uses his momentum against him and dodges the swing, hitting the man hard enough with his pipe that he stumbles and hits the ground. Sabo doesn’t check to make sure he stays down, instead scanning the confusion of moving bodies for Ace.

After a moment, he sees him - Ace is clutching a bloody nose a few feet away, trying to fend off a girl with matted hair and brass knuckles. Sabo comes to his aid immediately, arcing his pipe upwards in a lightning-fast motion into her face. She drops like a stone. Ace grabs his arms, just to keep from losing him in the chaos, and they meet gazes for a moment in the eye of the storm - grey into blue. The thing Sabo had wanted to say rushes up inside of him and then dies.

“Where’s Blackbeard?!”

“I don’t know,” Sabo replies, then, “There! Look!”

Ace whirls around just in time to see Blackbeard retreat into the warehouse, huge form disappearing into the shadows inside. By now, the fire has long since died, and rain is falling hard and fast, mixing with the blood on Sabo’s face.

“Come on, let’s follow him-”

Suddenly, from across the street, there’s a victorious yell. Ace’s face pales - he obviously recognises the voice - and he and Sabo turn in unison to see _Burgess_ of all people, leading a group of Blackbeard’s people up the street towards them, grinning all the while. It’s obvious that this attack was transparent from the beginning, that Blackbeard knew what they meant to do all along, and now he means to kill them all in one fell swoop with the might of all the forces he has at his disposal.

They’re hopelessly, terribly outnumbered.

Sabo and Ace exchange glances for one split second. Then, there’s a yell from right - Luffy is locked in combat with a blond man with long hair and a white and blue-striped mask. Ace rushes to his aid while Sabo barely manages to spin around in time to dive out of the way of a hail of bullets.

 _This is chaos,_ Sabo thinks, _this is hell. How the hell are we meant to get out of this?_

Sabo stumbles to his feet in the throng of moving bodies, barely managing to duck out of the way of a sword that impales the air an inch from his head, and then he turns and takes off in the direction of the warehouse. The blonde grips his pipe so tightly that it feels like his knuckles might split open, shoving people aside whenever they get in his way, feet cracking onto concrete. His hair hangs, wet, into his face, drenched by the rain that is now falling in sheets all around them.

Before he can break free from the hoarde, however, a thick hand wraps around his wrist. The owner of the hand spins him around and Sabo gets a vague impression of red and black. Then, a fist sinks into his stomach.

Sabo retches, air rushing out of him all at once, and he feels his already cracked ribs creak in protest. The punch is viciously forceful and he stumbles backwards, curling in on himself, barely managing to stay standing. The blonde barely manages to maintain his grasp on his pipe and block the next hit, which would have been a punch to the face. As it is, the hit is strong enough that it sends Sabo’s pipe straight into his own face. Sabo feels his nose break again, feels the delicate cartilage shatter, and blood gushes out of his nose and down over his lips.

“Shit!” Sabo stumbles backwards, squinting through the rain at his attacker - it’s Kidd, and the man looks somewhere between murderous and gleeful. “You!”

Kidd advances. “Like hell are you getting into that warehouse, brat.”

Sabo curses. There’s no way he can win a fight with this guy, especially when he’s already hurt in a thousand ways. Rain water falling into his eyes, he makes a quick decision and decides to play it dirty. Running over the little information he knows about Kidd Eustass in his head, Sabo formulates a quick and utterly reckless plan.

Sabo plasters a grin onto his aching face, looking over Kidd’s broad shoulder. “Ace! Do it now!”

It works. Kidd might be strong, but he’s a brainless lump. He spins around, looking for his nonexistent attacker, and Sabo takes his chance. Without hesitation, he jabs the end of his pipe hard into the inside of Kidd’s knee. The man stumbles forwards and Sabo hits him with his pipe over the back of the head with all of his strength, sending his head careening towards the ground. Sabo doesn’t bother to finish him off - he doubts he could, and he doesn’t have time for it anyway.

Instead he turns and runs again, pushing his aching legs until they burn with exertion. Sabo sprints until he runs headlong into Ace, nearly knocking heads with the other teen. They stare at one another in shock for a moment and then Sabo yells, over the sound of rain, “I’m going to finish this!”

“Sabo…” Ace looks into his eyes hard for a moment. “Okay. Here, take my dagger.”

Sabo takes the offered weapon with shaking hands and shoves it into his jacket. Their fingers brush. He and Ace stare into one another’s eyes for a moment, neither knowing what to say, and the thing Sabo had meant to say before comes back to him in a flash. The battle rages around them, blood and bodies and rain on every side, and almost as though he’s in a trance, Ace brings his hands up to cup the back of Sabo’s neck.

“Sabo…”

“Ace-” Sabo laughs through the rain, through the hurt and the fear and even through the tears he can feel burning his eyes. “Ace, I love you.”

Ace stares at him for a moment, wide-eyed, as though he can barely even begin to believe it. Then, something tender enters his eyes and a strange force seems to overtake him and he’s kissing Sabo so hard that all of his breath leaves him in an instant. He feels the heat of the battle rush away and the only thing that exists, for that moment in time, is Ace. Ace’s hands cradling the back of his neck burn on his skin and Sabo’s hand comes up to cup his face, feeling the rain on his skin. He can taste blood in the kiss but it doesn’t take away from the sweetness of it.

**([what the fuck my friend is amazing her art is amazing go look at it](http://yaboybokuto.tumblr.com/))**

After what feels simultaneously like a year and a millisecond, Ace pulls away, looking down at Sabo as though he’s still not sure that he isn’t dreaming. Sabo beams and pulls him in again, pressing a kiss to his lips and then his cheek and then his nose and then, bizarrely, they’re laughing, in the middle of the battlefield, embracing fiercely until Sabo feels as though he can’t breathe. They stay like that, wrapped up in one another, Sabo kissing every inch of Ace’s face that he can reach, Ace moving his hands up to thread them through Sabo’s wet hair. Sabo feels strangely, incredibly _whole._ Then, the moment breaks as Luffy lurches past, locked in a fierce fight with one of Blackbeard’s men. “You can do that later! C’m _on_!”

“I- shit, sorry!” Ace pulls away, face flushing bright red, seeming to realise that they're indeed in mortal peril right now. “Sabo-”

“I'll be okay. I promise.” Sabo grins and turns on his heel, breaking back into a sprint for the warehouse doors. This time, however, he can feel his heart soaring in his chest - he feels unbridled, uncontrollable affection rush through him for Ace and Luffy. His little brother and his… Sabo decides not to put a name to the thing yet, because he's still reeling and his head is spinning and he can still barely believe he _did it_. That really just happened. He can't remember the last time he felt like this - like something was truly, finally going right.

Abruptly, the warehouse doors loom in front of Sabo and he skids to a halt, feeling the smile fall from his face. This is it. He wraps his hand tightly around his pipe, feeling the dagger cold against his chest inside his jacket. Blackbeard is in there, somewhere. With the weight of Ace and Luffy’s lives resting heavy on his shoulders, Sabo pushes the doors open and step inside.

Inside the warehouse, it's so dark that for a moment, Sabo can see nothing but pitch blackness, only intersected occasionally by shafts of light through the high windows. When his eyes adjust, he can make out wide room, mostly empty, and a flight of stairs at the other end of the vast space. Blackbeard isn't in here. A shiver runs down Sabo’s back and he steps in fully, closing the doors behind him and plunging the room fully into blackness. His lips feel warm where he kissed Ace and he tries to hold onto the feeling even as the fear hits, thick and fast and terrible, suffocating him.

Taking a deep breath, Sabo starts through the room, every step taking him further from safety and closer to Blackbeard. He can feel his heart beating fast, too fast. The shadows seem to warp and contort around him, and he swears he can see Blackbeard in each of them, and each second leaves him feeling even more terrified. By the time he reaches the stairs, the images flashing through his brain of that night are close to blinding. He wishes for Ace or Luffy or _somebody_ , anybody.

But nobody comes.

Sabo climbs the stairs silently, and the second level is brighter than the first because most of the roof is torn away by fire. The flames have been doused by now, the remnants of their heat lingering in the room. The roof is burned away in places, letting patches of light in, and the rhythmic sound of rain hitting metal rings in time with Sabo’s footsteps.

It takes him a moment to make out Blackbeard. The man is standing at the other side of the room, in a patch of shadow. Sabo can tell from his silhouette that he's watching him, staring at him. Sabo stares right back, standing tall, hand snaking towards the dagger.

There’s silence for a tense handful of seconds. Then, Blackbeard says, “You won't do it. You won't kill me. You don't have the nerve, kid.”

“Test me.” Sabo raises his chin. “There are a lot of things I'd be willing to do for Ace and Luffy.”

“Murder ain't one of them.” Blackbeard steps out of the shadows, that leering grin on his face. “I know about your history, Outlook. I know everything. And it's not like you’re gonna be able to kill a man. You gotta have stomach for that, kid.”

“Maybe I'm not a murderer.” Sabo takes a step forwards and the tension rises. “But I'm willing to do what I have to do. To keep them alive.”

“You talk like you've already done it.” Another step. “But you're just like Portgas, aren't you? You're all talk.”

“I'm going to kill you or die trying, talk or not.” Another step.

Blackbeard stops. For a moment, the only sound in the room is the distant noise of the fight raging far below them. The smoke on the air helps to clear Sabo’s head. He carries on staring Blackbeard right in the face, caught in a silent battle of wills that he is unwilling to lose.

“You've already failed.”

“What?” Sabo raises his eyebrows.

“You ever wonder who stabbed the strawhatted brat all that time ago?” Blackbeard takes another step closer. “Who the traitor in his crew is? One of my men has been planted there for years, kid-”

“If it's Zoro, I don't care,” Sabo says flatly. “He wouldn't hurt Luffy even if it killed him.”

“He would if it killed his brother.”

Sabo scowls. “You've been blackmailing him. _You’re_ the one they used to live with.”

“Yes.” Another step. Sabo can feel his hand shaking. “And once I kill you, I’m going to go down there and make sure that Roronoa knows that if he wants the little kid to stay alive, there’s one person he’s going to have to kill. And this time, he ain’t allowed to fuck it up.”

Sabo stay perfectly still. He can feel the vicious anger on his face. “You’re not going to kill me, or my little brother. You won’t be killing anybody tonight.”

Blackbeard takes another step. Sabo can feel his heart in his throat. He realises, with a thrill of horror, that they’re only feet apart now. Patches of murky light stain Blackbeard’s face as he looks down at Sabo, psychopathic, grinning in the face of his enemy’s anger and fear. Ice floods Sabo’s veins. This is it. This is really it.

When Blackbeard strikes, Sabo is ready for it.

The punch is quick, but not quick enough. Sabo blocks it. Blackbeard regains his footing and makes a grab for Sabo’s throat but Sabo is faster, lashing out with his foot and nailing Blackbeard in the nose. Blackbeard rears back, howling with pain, and Sabo is suddenly on the offensive. He swings his pipe in a wide arc and there’s a spurt of blood as he makes contact with the side of the man’s head, knocking him backwards, sending him crashing to the floor.

Blackbeard tries to stand, growling with irritation, but Sabo forces him back down with a foot on the top of his chest, resting uncomfortably close to his throat. They stare at one another for a moment, and a strange, cruel sense of victory hits Sabo. He won. It’s over. He _won_.

“If you don’t get the hell away, you’re going to regret it,” Blackbeard rasps. He tries to push himself up but Sabo reaches for the dagger, lightening-fast, and the next second, the tip is a millimetre from Blackbeard’s fleshy throat.

“No.” Sabo grins. “No, I don’t think I will regret this.”

For the first time, a hint of fear enters Blackbeard’s face. “I told you to get off and I meant it-”

“Not a chance in hell.”

Sabo raises the dagger, feels the cold metal burning his skin. Blackbeard struggles hard but Sabo pushes down on his throat and he makes a choked noise. Sabo gathers up every last scrap of strength inside of him, all of his anger, all of his hatred. The knife, that had been shaking in his grasp before, gradually steadies.

“This,” Sabo says clearly, “Is for Ace, and all the shit you put him through. It’s for Luffy, and the pain you put him in.”

Blackbeard tries to shove him off but an alien kind of strength seems to have entered Sabo now. He keeps his foot steady and strong. The fear in Blackbeard’s eyes makes him look like a wild animal, pupils dilated, and Sabo is no longer afraid.

“Most of all,” he continues, raising the knife higher, “It’s for me.”

Taking a deep breath, Sabo looks into Blackbeard’s eyes and plunges the knife down, straight into his skull.

 


	33. Christmas Morning

Blackbeard hits the floor with a mundane thud.

For a moment, Sabo doesn't breathe. He pulls Ace's dagger back, breathing heavily, listening to Blackbeard's blood drip to the floor. The knife entered Blackbeard's skull just above his left eye socket, shattering his temple, and the skin there is grotesquely collapsed where the bone was broken. He's dead. Unseeing black eyes glare into Sabo's, glassy, glazed over by the marbled foil of death.

Blackbeard's  _dead_.

Sabo doesn't move for a long time, adrenaline leaving him as quickly as it came. He's not squeamish but after what could have been a minute or an hour, he turns around and collapses to his knees and gags, throwing up everything in his stomach onto the grubby, metal floor. He doesn't know what emotion he's feeling. At the one time Sabo would have expected to be feeling happiness, victory, relief… he feels completely numb. There's a hollow in the pit of his stomach. He just killed a person.

Sabo kneels, for a moment, in a puddle of vomit and blood. The knife falls from his fingers. His pipe rolls across the floor and out of reach. Breathing heavily, he eventually manages to shove his body into action, forcing himself to stand, to grab the pipe, to start back towards the staircase. His ears are ringing. He feels like he's going to pass out. At the top of the stairs, Sabo turns and takes one last look at Blackbeard, lying dead on the ground near a stack of explosives that never went off. For a moment, Sabo has the crazy thought of setting them off, of taking out Blackbeard and himself in a blaze of fire…

The idea dies. Sabo turns away from the body, stumbles down the stairs on unsteady feet, tries to stay awake even when all he wants to do is succumb to unconsciousness. He recognises, vaguely, that he might have pushed his body too far.

 _Blackbeard is dead. You killed him_.

It's near dawn. The sky is a dark grey, lightening outside of the high windows of the lower level. Sabo staggers towards the entrance doors. The fight doesn't sound as loud outside and he's abruptly sure that he's going to walk out there and see Ace and Luffy, dead at Burgess and Kidd's feet. It's not hard to guess who has won, but Sabo stumbles onwards either way. He isn't going to hide. He doesn't even think he can right now.

By the time Sabo reaches the doors, he feels so exhausted that it's almost as though his entire body has been drained of blood. His head spins with nausea. He realises, shivering, that Blackbeard's blood is all over his hand and his jacket and he can feel something hot and wet on his cheek where it must have splattered up onto his face. He doesn't bother to wipe it off - it feels as though even if he raises his hand, it'll be shaking too violently to control.

Taking a deep breath, Sabo pushes open the doors and steps out into the dawn.

It takes him a moment to take in the scene outside. He blinks into the rising light, stumbling to a halt in the doorway, squinting into the lingering smoke that hangs low over the ground. Shafts of dawn light filter through the smog, illuminating figures all around, stood up or sat on the ground in huddles. Sabo can see Law's silhouette, slouched and scowling as he nurses a head wound, sitting alongside Bepo at Shachi's bedside. The unconscious man is being tended to by a medic Sabo doesn't recognise. None of them look at Sabo.

He keeps on looking, staggering out further into the light, clutching his aching ribs. The Strawhats are huddled together to his left, shoulders tense and low, and they group around a point Sabo cannot see. Somebody's crying.  _One of them has died. Maybe more._  Sabo expects to feel grief, or anger or  _something_ , but he stays perfectly numb, the anguish dulled by physical pain and exhaustion. He wants nothing more than to fall over but he can't. Not yet.

To the right, Nojiko is being tended to by another medic - again, Sabo doesn't recognise them. She turns to him and grins weakly, shooting him a thumbs-up with the arm that isn't broken. Her eyes are red like she's been crying. She looks…almost broken. Sabo can't even muster a fake smile. He feels as though he's been punched in the face, as though somebody has taken his brain and ran it through a blender. The rest of the hearts are near Nojiko, nursing wounds, mourning their dead. Penguin catches Sabo's eye and gives him a forlorn look which Sabo doesn't react to.

Then, he sees him.

"Let me go!" Ace is straining against the grip of a tall, dark-haired man, scowling. "Don't you get it?! Sabo's up there! With Blackbeard! Let me go, you-"

"You're in no condition to run up there," the man replies in a calm voice. "Look at you. You can barely stand."

"I don't care! Look, I can't waste anymore time, he could be dead already!"

Sabo wants to call out, to yell that he's  _here_ , that he's still alive. His throat won't obey him. He tries to force his body to run but it feels pinned down by a sudden weight on his shoulders. He manages to take one stumbling, faltering step in Ace's direction-

A voice yells out, from the left, " _Sabo!_ "

Then Sabo is in the air, knocked off his feet by what feels like a cannonball to his gut. The cannonball wraps its arms around Sabo and they crash to the ground in a heap. Pain explodes through Sabo in split second and his vision goes white for a moment but when it comes back, it's Luffy's face that he can see pressed right up close to his own, Luffy's beaming grin that takes up his entire fields of vision, Luffy's arms that are wrapped tightly around his torso.

Emotion comes rushing back like a tidal wave. Relief - pure, brilliant relief - rushes through Sabo and he grips Luffy back, pressing his head against the kid's shoulder, feeling his whole body shake. They kneel there on the concrete, Luffy's wing curling around Sabo's back very tightly, and the happiness doesn't come, nor the victory, nor the grief or the guilt. All Sabo can feel is overwhelming relief, and a need to sleep, and affection for Luffy and Ace that hits him so hard that he almost can't stand it.

But he can't sleep, not yet, he realises as he meets Ace's eyes over his little brother's shoulder. Ace looks like shit. The hair on one side of his head is matted with blood and he's limping - no, not even that, he looks barely able to  _walk_ \- on a torn up leg. One of his wings is decidedly broken and a shard of broken, whitish bone juts from between the bloodied feathers at the ridge of the top of his wing. Covered in scrapes and bruises and dust, he stares for a moment, open-mouthed, as though he can hardly believe that Sabo is even real.

"I did it," Sabo manages to croak. "Ace, he's dead. I did it. He's dead."

Ace's remaining strength seems to give out. He falls to his knees and grabs them both into a desperate hug, broken wing hitting the ground lamely as he collapses. Sabo realises that his eyes are wet and then Ace is crying, shaking and sobbing into his shoulder. Sabo realises abruptly what this must mean to him. Since he was fourteen, life for Ace has been hell because of Blackbeard. Because of the amount of times Blackbeard has beaten him into the ground, forced him to steal and kill just to stay alive. His whole life has been ruled by the man…

And it's  _over_.

"The revolutionaries came," Luffy tells Sabo quietly, still an inch from his face. "They saved us. They drove Burgess and Kidd and the others away. One of them says she knows you."

Sabo wonders whether he should stand, try to find her… but he feels as though his legs might give out even if he tried. As well as that, he doesn't feel quite ready to let go yet. Instead, he just nods, holding tighter onto Ace, who is still shaking.

After a moment, he looks at Luffy. "One of your gang… who?"

"It's…" Luffy sniffs and shifts closer. "It's Zoro. And Nami."

Sabo winces. Luffy was close to both of them. "Luffy…"

"They were the first two." Luffy clamps his trembling lower lip between his teeth. "The first two I met, the first two when we decided to make a gang. And they're…"

"Come here," Sabo says quietly, and then it's abruptly he and Ace comforting Luffy as he wails, sandwiched between them. Sabo feels strange, being the only one not crying. Luffy tucks his wing around himself like a safety blanket and cries onto Sabo's shoulder. Ace looks bitterly upset and, tentatively, Sabo reaches across and their fingers brush-

...After a moment, Ace grabs his hand.

"Lu, please don't cry, please-" Sabo swallows hard. "Please don't cry. I promise they're…"

He has no idea what to say and trails off but Luffy seems to get the sentiment. Pulling back slightly, the kid (because he's a  _child_ , for fuck's sake, just a kid, only fifteen) wipes his eyes and nods, sniffing. "Blackbeard's definitely dead?"

"Definitely. I promise."

"Good," Ace says. Then, "Fuck, it's over. It's really over."

"We're alive." Sabo squeezes his hand. "We can do whatever the hell we want and nobody can stop us now. We're free."

Luffy staggers to his feet. "I gotta tell my crew that we're going home."

"We are?" Ace asks.

"Where is home?" Sabo asks softly.

"The apartment, I guess." Luffy shrugs. "I just… let's just go home, please?"

"Okay." Ace nods. He and Sabo are still slightly tangled on the rough ground. "Okay. We can go home."

Luffy nods and trudges back to the little huddle of people. Through gaps in arms and bodies, Sabo can see a tattooed shoulder and a patch of green hair, and he looks away. For a moment, he and Ace look at one another, and Sabo feels his face colour as he remembers those three words, and the kiss, and the rush of wholeness that came with it.

Something deep beneath all of the hurt and the fatigue and the relief wants to feel that again.

Before Sabo can say a word, however, there's a small cough. They both look up. The dark-haired stranger who had been holding Ace back is looking back at them, one eyebrow raised, and Sabo stumbles to his feet. The man is tall, with long hair and a cloak that seems in strangely good condition in a place like this. Ace stands with him.

"I'm Dragon," the stranger introduces himself, sticking out his hand. Sabo shakes it. "We stopped this war for our own reasons, but… it's good to see you alive. I know of your background."

Sabo freezes up. "My...background?"

Dragon nods. "I was at a few of the debates, actually, to watch. It's… bolstering to see such a bold young person fighting for change. Are your parents supporters of our cause?"

"No." Sabo looks away. "No, sir, they… didn't agree with it."

"I'm sorry to hear that. I assume that's why you disappeared." Dragon looks at him for a moment, before reaching into his pocket. He presses a slip of paper into Sabo's hand. "You can find us here. We're trying to prompt social and economic upheaval. We need more young people like you, Sabo."

"Thank you, sir." Sabo pockets the paper with trembling hands, afraid for some reason that he's going to get blood on it. A strange kind of admiration rushes up in him for dragon, even though he barely knows the man. "I'll bear that in mind. I'll… be in touch."

"Good." Dragon glances around. "There was somebody here to see you, but she… seems to have disappeared. As is typical of her."

There's a little irony in Dragon's tone, as though sharing an inside joke with him. Sabo doesn't get it, but doesn't bother questioning it.

"Can it wait? Because… we're going home. My-" Sabo cuts himself off, colouring. "Ace needs medical attention. Luffy needs rest, so do I."

Dragon stares at him for a moment. "Alright. Are you sure my medics couldn't help…?"

Luffy traipses back over, not even sparing Dragon a glance. "Can we go home now?"

"Okay." Sabo squeezes Ace's hand a little tighter, looping his other arm around Luffy's neck. "Okay, let's go home."

* * *

The walk back to the grey district is hard. Ace can barely put any weight on his leg. Sabo wonders whether they should have just stayed there, and gotten one of the medics to look at it. Either way… it feels good to be going home. Like returning to a shelter after years under fire. They don't speak much as they walk, trekking back through the city as the sky lightens further with the new dawn, and Sabo busies himself looking around at the city as they pass through it.

It's… bizarre. Nothing has changed here. Even though Sabo's whole life has been turned upside down, the city has remained the same - grey and harsh and… familiar. Almost comfortingly familiar. Sabo wonders whether the city itself is his home now. The streets are already beginning to get busy as people troop to work, and set up stalls to sell their goods. In one single window, Sabo sees Christmas lights. He realises with a jolt that it must be close to the end of december.

Checking his phone for the time… Sabo's jaw drops. "Ace, Luffy… it's Christmas day."

Ace stops. "Wait, what?"

"Yeah, it's December 25th. Christmas morning." Sabo looks up, a tiny smile tugging at his bruised lips. "Merry Christmas, I guess."

"Christmas has never been that great with us," Luffy says. "'S always just been another day."

"Yeah… yeah, it's been bad with me, too." Sabo carries on walking alongside them. "But… still, it's a new day. And we're alive, at least. That's reason to celebrate."

"Yeah. It is."

Ace's hand brushes Sabo's hand slightly, and then he jerks it away as though burned. Sabo touches his hand lightly with the back of his own. Then Ace goes in again, fingertips brushing Sabo's palm-

Then, Luffy interrupts them. "Are you gonna hold hands or not?!"

Sabo stares. "I…I mean-"

"You've been best friends for-" Luffy flails his arms in an agitated manner. "Ages! You don't have to make it weird and awkward! Nothing has to change! You're both hurt and tired and- agh, just  _do it_! Stop being stupid!"

Tension releasing in his chest, Sabo laughs, slipping his hand into Ace's. "Sorry, Lu. I guess we're both dumbasses."

Ace snorts. "Speak for yourself,  _you're_ the dumbass!"

"I might be a dumbass, but I'm your dumb-"

"If you finish that sentence, Sabo Portgas, I'm going to throw myself off a building. Do you  _know_ how many movies that's been in?!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I just did it to annoy you, I know it's cliche," Sabo laughs. Then, he freezes. "Wait… 'Sabo Portgas'?"

Ace turns bright red. "I- I just figured, since you don't like being called Sabo Outlook, and- and I mean, Luffy is a Portgas too, it's a family thing- and I-"

Luffy bursts out laughing. "Oh my god, you're so red!"

"Shut it!"

A warm feeling spreads through Sabo, but it's muffled by exhaustion. They're close to the apartment now and he can feel his feet dragging as the shock sets in, and the horrible drained feeling. All he wants now, more than anything in the world, is sleep. There are no carolers, no flashing lights, no merriness. In the grey district, Christmas is just another day.

But now… it feels special to Sabo.

It's a new day.

By the time they reach the apartment, the sky is light and Sabo is dead on his feet. Ace unlocks the door and inside, somebody has cleaned away the blood of Blackbeard's attack - maybe one of the Strawhats. The sight of the living room makes Sabo's hand tremble slightly as images of that night come rushing back… but Luffy and Ace are there, and Blackbeard is dead, and all three of them are alive and they're going to stay that way.

 _It's a new day_.

"C'mon." Ace tugs him down onto the couch.

"But, your wing-"

"-Isn't going to fall off," Ace finishes. "I'll be okay. Look, can we just sleep?"

Reluctantly, Sabo agrees, peeling off the blood-soaked jacket. Ace stays sitting up to sleep, so as not to agitate his injured wing, and Sabo sits beside him, resting his head on his shoulder, knees tucked up tight to his body between them. Luffy ends up curled up into Sabo's other side, and he falls asleep quickly, muttering about Zoro and Nami and being sorry.

"This a mess," Ace whispers, a few minutes after they all settle.

"Yeah," Sabo agrees. "But it's a new day. We can live on."

"We can?"

"I know we can."

"...Merry Christmas, Sabo."

"Merry Christmas, Ace."

"I…" Ace swallows around words that are obviously hard to say. "I… love you."

Sabo smiles slightly. "I love you too."

"I… I love you!" Ace seems to gather his confidence. "I love you!"

"Okay, I got it-"

"Hey, Sabo?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you!"

"You don't have to keep saying it!"

Ace laughs, then looks down at Sabo, face melting into something tender. "Yeah. I guess… it is a new day."

"Yeah. So now-" Sabo presses closer. "Let's sleep that day away."

Ace agrees. They fall asleep together, and none of the trio opens their eyes for a long time.


	34. Healing

**** The next twenty-four hours are a slow, indistinct blur. Sabo wakes up briefly at noon and tries to get up but decides against it at the last second. Ace is warm and the couch is comfortable and maybe he doesn’t want to return to reality yet; so he stays curled up and dozing, light filtering through his closed lids as daylight streaks through the apartment windows. It’s quiet and still and warm and Sabo’s thoughts are slow, blurred by sleep. Luffy is breathing on the back of his neck. He can feel feathers, soft against his skin. 

Content, Sabo falls back to sleep. 

When he wakes up next, it’s dark and Ace is moving, trying to stand. Sabo shifts and groans, eyelids heavy, and grabs Ace’s wrist loosely to stop him from getting up. “Ace…?”

“It’s fine, Sabo, go back to sleep.” Ace tries to pull his wrist free. “I’m just getting some water.”

Sabo grumbles and doesn’t let go. “Don’ go.”

“I’ll only be a second.” Ace pulls his wrist back and Sabo hears him walk into the kitchen. Luffy is still asleep, snuffling against the back of Sabo’s sweatshirt, and it’s dark outside. Sabo tucks his legs up to his chest, feet freezing cold, and listens to the sound of Ace pouring water into a glass in the kitchen. All is peaceful. There’s nowhere in the world that Sabo would rather be.

But still…

Against his will, Sabo finds himself glancing down. He remembers this couch and all the good memories that come with it - waking up here after the night in the train station, sitting here with Ace and talking about the future, sleeping here every night and being warm and safe and secure. But Sabo can also remember the memories that aren’t as pleasant. He remembers falling against this couch when Blackbeard was kicking the hell out of him, he remembers slumping back by its side as his fingers were broken one by one. He remembers-

“Sabo?”

Sabo looks up. Luffy is awake and looking at him strangely, as though he’s been calling his name for a while now and Sabo hasn’t been answering. Sabo realises with a jolt that his body has gone rigid, that his muscles have tensed up and he feels as though he’s close to yelling out. Slowly, he tries to release the tension, forcing his body to relax. He doesn’t want to ruin this time - the time when for once, they’re all safe and happy - by having a flashback right here and now. 

“Sorry. Zoned out.” Sabo turns over slightly, long legs still bunched up to his chest, and he and Luffy look at one another for a moment. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, ‘m okay.” A pause. “I miss my crew.”

Sabo knows Luffy well enough to know that that really means,  _ I miss Zoro and Nami _ . He doesn’t comment on it. 

Luffy stretches, yawning. “What time is it?”

“I dunno.” Sabo squeezes his eyes shut, tiredness tugging at his consciousness. Vaguely, he hears Ace come back into the room and feels warmth against his back. Then, sleep comes rushing back in again. 

By the time Sabo wakes fully, it’s the dead of night, close to 0300. Christmas day is over. The living room is dark. Ace’s fingers are loosely looped around his own, and Sabo stares at his sleeping face for a moment, wondering for the first time what they are. What’s going to happen with them after the incident out by the warehouse. Then he decides, abruptly, not to care. Whatever is meant to happen, will. Either way, Sabo doubts they’re going to leave one another. Not now.

With a sigh, Sabo pushes himself to his feet, extracting himself from the warmth of the couch. He sways on his feet for a moment, darkness rushing momentarily to obscure his vision, but he doesn’t feel nearly as tired as he did before. His head is aching, crusted flakes of dried blood from his head wound peppering his cheeks, but he feels about a million times better than he has in a long, long time.

Making his way into the kitchen, Sabo pours himself a little water from their stores. It’s a pleasant surprise to find that the Blackbeard’s didn’t raid them. He leans back against the table, sipping, glass feeling slightly foreign now that it’s held in his left hand. The room is dark around him but Sabo doesn’t mind. He finds, strangely, that he doesn’t feel like he has much to fear from the dark anymore. From the living room, he can hear Ace and Luffy’s deep breathing, and the sound of it is soothing. They’re alive. They made it through. 

Some part of Sabo’s messed-ukp, tired brain asks,  _ what now? _

He can’t find an answer, not for a long time. As he stands there, in the darkness and the cool and the calm, he can’t think clearly. Will they go back to Wakeshead, and live their lives out in the safety and the security of the electriglass? Sabo doubts it. Will they travel far, far away, leaving this city in the dust, forgetting it even exists? Sabo… finds himself unhappy with that conclusion, too. He’s tired of running. Tired of leaving the past behind. Because the city doesn’t feel like something he can leave behind anymore.

Sabo considers staying here. Maybe Ace would get back into risking his life with gang work, Luffy would go back to being unhappy in school school, Sabo would go back to working himself to death. It would be the same was it always was but after everything - the explosion and the apartment and the Hunt and the beating and Wakeshead and his hand and the war - that’s hard to imagine, too. All Sabo can really think with complete certainty is that he wants- no, he  _ needs- _ to stay with Luffy and Ace. 

And that leads him onto another tough topic: Ace. Ace, who Sabo had never really known he felt such complicated emotions for until that moment on the battlefield. Ace, who (now, after the kiss, after those three words) is seemingly impossible to get out of his head. Ace, who - now that he looks back on things - Sabo knows he has loved for a long time now. Ace...who loves him back.

They’re  _ in love _ . Or, at least, Sabo’s pretty sure they are. The L word is confusing and unfamiliar. It’s not like in the movies, where the guy and the girl meet eyes and in that moment, there’s a spark and then they’re in love. It’s more gruesome, more complicated, more ugly. Sabo knows that whatever he feels for Ace (and he’s pretty sure he knows what this feeling is) is incredibly strong and breathtaking in its intensity, but… it’s marred by everything else. By injury and nightmares and bad feelings and anxiety. By the voice in Sabo’s head that sounds like his fathers, screaming that he’s worthless every time he looks at Ace and feels heat in his chest. 

He wonders, feeling slightly helpless, if all the bad stuff will ever melt away. Because it’s hard. Hard to imagine a future where they’re all okay and nothing hurts and nothing is bad. Sabo can barely even imagine leaving the apartment right now he feels so shaky. The world feels so utterly fucked right now that it might never change, and hopelessness comes in waves, impossible to hold back. 

And the self doubt it still there, too, of course it is. Because what if Ace never really felt that way at all? What if he just kissed him back because he felt like he had to? What if Sabo has been kidding himself all along, wishing for something that can’t be his, just making Ace uncomfortable? What if-

“You should stop thinking so hard.” 

Sabo flinches so hard that he spills a little water onto the floor. Whirling around, he shifts his weight into a fighting pose on instinct-

It’s Ace, silhouetted in the doorway to the tiny kitchen, with his hands raised. “Whoa, whoa, Sabo!”

“Sorry-” Sabo stumbles back. “Shit, sorry. I’m on edge. Fuck, I spilled the water-”

“Sabo!” Ace grabs his shoulders gently. “Sab, it’s okay. I swear. It’s fine. Are you okay?”

“I’m-”

“Don’t say it,” warns Ace. “Don’t say fine. If you’re not fine, don’t say you are. And I know you’re not fine.”

It’s still very dark and Sabo can abruptly feel his heart pounding very hard. He looks at Ace for a moment, squinting to make out the shadowed features of his face, and then he leans in, very slowly. Ace’s eyes flutter closed. They hover very close for a handful of moments, lips a milimetre from touching...then Sabo leans in and closes the distance between them, tilting his head to the side, sinking into Ace as they connect. 

The kiss isn’t like the one on the battlefield - it’s not full of tension and passion and blood. It’s slow, very slow, and Ace is uncharacteristically tentative as he slips his arms around Sabo’s waist. They stand there, swaying slightly together in the darkness, and Sabo pulls back for a millisecond but Ace chases him and they’re kissing again, slowly, affectionately. It feels amazing, more amazing than Sabo could have imagined, but then Ace accidentally steps on his foot and they’re both laughing, giggling into the kiss, happy and grinning and Sabo feels so, so alive. 

“Sorry,” Ace whispers. 

Sabo nuzzles his neck a little, as if to say he doesn’t mind it. “We should go back to bed. And in the morning, your wing needs Law.”

“Law’s probably busy. I’m fine.”

“I thought you wanted  _ me _ to stop saying that,” Sabo murmurs. 

Ace is silent for a moment. “I’ve had worse.”

For a while longer they stand there, in silence, still holding one another. Sabo rests his head on Ace’s shoulder and sighs, feeling his energy drain from him. It’s obvious that neither of them is ready to let go yet, nor will they be for a while. Sabo imagines Luffy coming in here in the morning, seeing them still standing here after hours, and it makes him smile a little.

“I’ve been thinking,” Sabo says eventually.

“I’m scared.”

“Ha-ha, you’re very funny.” Sabo turns his head, face pressed into Ace’s neck. “I mean, I’ve been thinking about the future. About you and Luffy. About… what comes next.”

“I hadn’t thought about it,” Ace admits into Sabo’s hair. “Been a bit busy passed out. What do you think we should do?”

“If you’d asked me that a month ago, I would have said I would do anything to leave the city for good. Find someplace safe where nobody can hurt us anymore.” Sabo sighs. “But, now… I don’t feel like I can. Not anymore. I can’t just… forget how bad things are here. I can’t leave this place behind.”

Ace is silent. Sabo can’t see his face, can’t tell what he’s thinking, and he wonders but he’s pretty sure Ace isn’t willing to share.

“I guess… I just can’t really stop. Trying to change things, I mean. I want to change this city and I want to make sure Luffy can have a good life, a good world to grow up into, and no matter how long it takes… I’m going to make a change. I can’t make myself stop caring. I can’t.”

“I know,” Ace murmurs. “That’s really  _ you _ .”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re just… frustratingly moral.” Ace laughs quietly, the sound vibrating against Sabo’s cheek. “I know why you care, and I feel the same way, I do… it’s just… I guess there’s a little bit of Wakeshead in me. A little bit of me that just wants to keep you two safe, and the rest of the world can explode for all I care. Luffy’s the same. We’re not like you.”

“If you’re saying I’m somehow this great person, you’re wrong. I’m not a good person.”

“Why the hell not?”

“I’m… I don’t know. I’m just not. Anyway, I’m tired. And now we’re both thinking too hard.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Ace stretches and yawns. “Luffy’s gonna be awake soon, whining for food.”

“And I’m gonna go out and get some when he does, and you’re staying here to make sure he’s okay.”

“See, this is what I said about you being a good person.”

Sabo snorts. “More like a good babysitter.”

Ace laughs, but his form is stiffer now, his face set into lines of discontent. After a moment, he grabs Sabo again, pressing him into his chest roughly. Sabo makes a little noise of surprise that he would never admit was a squeak but allows the sudden affection, letting Ace crush him against him, knowing that he must need this. He doesn’t ask. Ace will talk when he wants to. 

Eventually, he does. 

“I… thought I’d lost you, back there. When you ran off to Blackbeard. I saw your back as you ran to the warehouse and then as you went in, and I didn’t see your face, not once. I thought-” A choked laugh. “I thought it was the last time I’d seen you. And that I would never be able to remember what your face looked like. I thought you were dead.”

“I-”

More forcefully this time. “Sabo,  _ I thought you were dead _ .”

“Ace, I’m….I…”

“And if it hadn’t been for Luffy…” Ace holds him fractionally tighter. “I think I would have given up, right then and there. Because… because maybe I still don’t know why I want to live. Maybe I still haven’t found a reason yet. But you two are my reason for now and if I lost you, either of you…”

Sabo shudders. “You won’t lose us. I swear.”

“Never do that again. Never. I can’t go through that again, Sabo, I can’t.”

“You won’t have to.” Sabo’s eyes sting as he pulls back and looks Ace full in the face. “And I don’t know how long it’ll take, but… someday, we’ll find your reason. We will.”

“Okay.” Ace rubs his wet cheek clumsily. “Ugh, I’m- fuck.”

The atmosphere breaks. Sabo reaches up to dry Ace’s cheek with his hoodie sleeve. It’s the same sweatshirt from what feels like a thousand years ago, back when Sabo rolled it up and put it under Ace’s head under the bridge. 

“I know the feeling,” Sabo laughs. “We can be ugh-fuck together.”

“Deal.” Ace laughs quietly. It doesn’t exactly sound like a laugh - more like a sad, watery little huff - but the sound is music to Sabo’s ears. “Let’s sleep.”

“Definitely.” 

They traipse back into the living room together, tripping over each other in the dark, expecting to see Luffy passed out on the couch. What they don’t expect to see, however, is Luffy sitting up, obviously alert and looking mischievous around the blood on his face. 

He shoots them a cheeky grin, crosses his legs and croons, “Ga _ aay _ .”

“You were listening?! Luffy, you shit-”

“You two are so mushy!” Luffy wrinkles his nose. “I mean, ‘s’about time, actually. At least now you’re together, you two can stop with the really long stares, right? When you look at each other all the time? Can you stop doing that please?”

Sabo and Ace glance at one another and in the dull light, Sabo happens to notice that Ace’s eyes are a particular, almost bright shade of stormy grey and they’re so familiar but they still manage to make him feel warm and soft inside-

“You’re! Doing! It! Again! Right after I said it!”

Sabo chuckles. “Sorry, Lu.” 

Luffy gives them a helpless look, as if to tell them that they’re now both considered hopeless cases. Sabo stumbles through the dark, back towards the couch, and settles back into the soft, sagging cushions, facing Luffy. The kid sticks his tongue out at Sabo and he responds by, childishly, blowing a raspberry. 

“Alright, children, stop bickering,” Ace says loftily, stretching back onto the couch with his injured wing hanging loosely at his side. 

“Children? Ace Portgas, how dare you.”

“Yeah! Sabo’s right, I’m not a kid!”

“Okay, fine, so maybe Sabo’s  _ adolescent. _ I’ll admit that. But you’re a squirt. So small that you’re not even a child. A toddler. You’re a little bab-”

“Shuddup!” Luffy crosses his arms and pouts. “Grandpa.”

“What did you just say to me?! You little prick-”

“I’m not little!”

Sabo snorts, trying not to burst out laughing, sandwiched between the arguing pair. “Grandma Sabo doesn’t have a nice ring to it, Lu.”

“Tough!”

Ace turns away, crossing his arms, and Luffy does too and Sabo abruptly has a face full of feathers on both sides as their wings puff up with agitation. “You two are my favourite people,” he sighs. 

“We know.”

“But I’m your favourite one, right?”

Ace ruffles. “I’m his favourite one.”

“No, it’s me-”

“You’re both my favourite person but you’re going to be my least favourite unless you  _ go to sleep _ ,” Sabo eventually says, half irritated and half amused. “I’m tired.”

“Okay, fine.” Both of them turn around in unison ( _ brothers to the n’th degree _ , Sabo thinks) and Sabo curls into Ace, feeling the wide smile on his own face. It doesn’t fade even as he feels himself dropping off to sleep.

And for the first time in a long while, Sabo isn’t afraid of the nightmares. 

* * *

But of course, the nightmares do come, and with them comes the panic and the terror and the cold sweat. Sabo wakes up shivering and tense, a yell on his lips, and Ace tries to ask what it was about but Sabo doesn’t want to talk. Luffy is concerned - obviously he is, because  _ fuck _ , this really is continuing to affect his older brother - but Sabo shakes them off, getting dressed and leaving early, saying that he’s going to get Law. Obviously, he doesn’t want to relive it. Ace doesn’t want to force him… but he can’t stop himself from worrying. Especially because Sabo’s hands are still shaking even as he leaves the house.

So while Sabo is gone, leaving with a promise to get Law and some food, Ace and Luffy manage to drag themselves off the couch and traipse sleepily into the kitchen. There’s still a little water on the floor from where Sabo spilled it last night. They sit opposite one another, and Ace stares out of the window, nostalgia hitting him with surprising force. For a moment, it feels just like the old times - before all this, before Sabo, before the war. Back when it was just Ace and Luffy. 

The memory hits him hard. 

_ “Ace! Ace, look! It’s massive!”  _

_ Ace smiles a little as he watches Luffy run in and out of rooms, exploring the house from top to bottom, incredibly excited by it all. A warm glow grows and grows in his chest. It took a lot of work to get an apartment like this, but… it’s worth it. Luffy is going to have a good place to grow up, a place where he can be safe and well cared-for and warm.  _

_ Luffy bounces into the kitchen, skidding to a stop in front of Ace and throwing his arms around his waist. “Ace! It’s so brilliant here!” _

_ “It’s just a little place, Luffy,” Ace says softly, thinking of Wakeshead. “But I’m glad you like it. This place… it’s home now, okay.” _

_ Luffy looks up at him. “Home?”  _

_ “Yeah. We’re staying here. And you’re going to be safe.” _

_ “I saw you talking to that Blackbeard guy…” Luffy steps back. He’s a tiny little thing, grimy and skinny with overgrown hair and limbs that seem too long for him and wrists that are thicker than his arms. He looks like any typical street kid. He and Ace could be brothers. “Ace… he’s not a good guy. Are you gonna be safe, too?” _

_ The innocence of the question makes Ace’s heart seize up in his chest. “I…” _

_ “Because if you’re not gonna be safe, then we can’t stay here. Ace, I want you to be safe.” _

_ “I know you do, kid, I know.” Ace tugs him back in, musses up his hair. He has recently hit a growth spurt and he’s well over Luffy’s height, so much taller than him that he can’t even rest his chin on the top of his head. “But… that’s not what matters. I’ll be fine. Blackbeard is giving us a place and even if I don’t like him that much… it’s safe. You’ll be safe here. And I will too.” _

_ “You’re fourteen,” Luffy mutters into his chest. “You don’t haf’ta be a grown-up yet. Just stay a kid…” _

_ “I can’t.” Ace forces a laugh. “I’ve got a kid brother to look after, haven’t I?” _

Luffy’s voice jerks him back to the real world. “What’cha thinking about?”

“Nothing. Just… stuff.” Ace looks at him. “How’re you doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean- I mean you just-” Ace sighs, not knowing how to approach the subject. “Two of your crew are dead. Are you okay?”

“I’m- I dunno.” Luffy looks uncomfortable. “I guess… I should be sad. It kinda hasn’t sunk in yet. That they’re gone. I thought-” He chokes back what might have been laugh. “I thought earlier that in the morning, I could go see Zoro. Y’know, to make sure he’s okay after the fight. And then… then I remembered.”

Ace stays silent. Sabo would be better at this than he is. He has no idea what to say, no idea how to help, no matter how much he wants to. He feels as helpless as he did when Sabo lost his hand. 

“I don’t know.” Luffy shrugs roughly. “I’m…”

“I know. I know the feeling,” Ace assures abruptly. “To feel like you didn’t have the chance to… to say goodbye. I know how it feels. But… it’ll pass. Just let it pass.”

Luffy doesn’t burst into tears or spill his feelings or let grief take over. It’s not in his character, after all - even when he’s downed like this, some part of him is still a fighter. He leans his forehead onto the table, scrunches up his shoulders, curls his wing around his torso as though he’s trying to keep his heart itself from bursting from his chest. Ace pushes his hair back from his forehead and waits for the grief to pass, silent, willing to give Luffy his time. 

It takes a long, long time for Luffy to look up again. 

 


	35. World Gone Mad

“That’s all I can do for now.”

“Thank you,” Ace replies emphatically, gently feeling the bandage now wrapped around the crest of his left wing. “Seriously, Law, thank you. For everything-”

“It’s fine.” Law stands, wipes the blood off his hands with a rag. “I don’t help you to get thanks, Portgas.”

“Then why do you?”

Law pretends he didn’t hear him. He turns to Sabo. “Alright, you next.”

“I’m fine,” Sabo says, obviously not fine. “Really. You’ve probably got a lot to do back at your base anyway, and now you’ve taken care of Ace and Luffy-”

“At least let me stitch up your forehead,” Law says flatly.

“Stitch…?” Sabo reaches up, feels the deep gash on temple, winces. “I don’t remember getting that.”

“Either way, it could become infected.” Law points to the seat Ace has just vacated, across from him at the kitchen table. “Sit.”

“Alright… fine.” Sabo gives in and sits. Law disinfects his needle and, without anesthetic to speak of, gets to work. Sabo’s face is tight and grey with pain but he doesn’t protest. 

For a while, there’s silence in the kitchen. Ace gently stretches and contracts his broken wing, wincing as the torn muscles ache and sting, and tries not to look at Sabo. Luffy left as soon as Law was done with him, going out to reunite with his crew. Ace had wanted to go, but...it’s not his family. The crew deserve time on their own - time to grieve, time to recover. It’s the least Ace can do to allow Luffy that time, after everything that has happened.

Once Law is done, he disposes of the needle and starts packing up his first-aid kit, while Sabo feels the newly stitched cut on his forehead with his fingertips. “When should I take them out?”

“In a few weeks,” Law instructs. “And keep the wound clean, if you can. You’re lucky it didn’t bleed as much as I would have expected.”

“Thank you, Law.” Sabo says sincerely. Then, “How are things on the outside? How are your crew?” 

“Everything’s alright. My crew are… recovering. We lost three, and Shachi still hasn’t woken, but we’re alright. We’re definitely not going out of commision - though word on the street says that the Strawhats might be, after losing two fundamental members of their crew.”

Ace doesn’t comment on that. Leaning back against the kitchen counter, he asks, “What about the city? How are things now that Blackbeard is gone?”

“His death is common knowledge - there’s no mystery to it. The police are apparently involved and people are saying they have more information than we’d thought, so most of Blackbeard’s crew have dispersed. They’re scared, without their leader’s name to hide behind. None of them know who to trust.”

“And Blackbeard’s territories?”

“People are claiming them when they can. The police force has had a lot on their hands - there are small fights and shootouts breaking out everywhere over unclaimed terf.” Law snorts. “Everybody’s running around like a chicken without a head. And your name has been in the mix too, Portgas.”

“My name?” 

“The story right now - or at least, the story everybody believes - is that Blackbeard’s goon Ace Portgas murdered the man himself. Sabo-ya is unknown entirely, so it was put to your name.”

“Do the police know this?”

“I would expect them too. But they won’t put a price on your head for that”

“Why?” Ace rolls his eyes. “I’ve caused enough trouble for them anyway. And I’m Fae, don’t forget. It’s not like they wouldn’t be eager to-”

“There’s no proof,” Law cuts over him. “That you did it, I mean. And as well as that, even if there was proof, you practically did them a favour in their eyes. Blackbeard has been the most powerful gang leader in the city for a long time and once all of this calms down, the city will be a more… manageable place without him. The police force are hardly mourning his loss - and he’s Fae too, so a trial on his murder would probably be unsuccessful because nobody cares, really. If you were human, your innocence wouldn’t even be up for debate.”

Ace is silent for a while. “Thank you for everything, Law. I mean - don’t get me wrong, you’re still an asshole and I don’t forgive you for what you did to Sabo. But… thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Law says shortly, before standing, first-aid kit tucked under his right arm. “Try not to die, Portgas.” He nods to Sabo.

“See you, Law,” Ace calls, watching him leave the room promptly. 

After a moment, the front door opens and closes, and Sabo says, “I’ll go lock it.”

Ace nods and sits down at the kitchen table, being careful not to sit back against his injured wing. Luffy had a bad head wound, a nasty gash on his arm and a bruised stomach. Ace himself had a broken wing and a few minor cuts and bruises. Sabo probably has half a dozen more injuries but of course, he won’t let Law tend to them. All three of them came out of that battle worn and hurt and exhausted, but they made it out, at least. This morning, Ace feels unreasonably cheerful.

Sabo comes back in and pours himself and Ace a glass of water. Usually, such is a luxury, and they would measure the water perfectly just to make sure they had enough. Today, however, Sabo is apparently feeling hopeful too. For a while, they sit quietly, taking sips one at a time. No conversation is needed. Ace checks his phone for the first time in days and doesn’t reply to any of the messages in his inbox - there are three from Bepo that he doesn’t bother to open, a few from ex-Blackbeards asking for help and shelter, and a handful of texts from unknown numbers that must be Luffy’s crewmates.

“How was Luffy this morning?” Sabo asks. “I was a bit short with him.”

“You know Luffy - he doesn’t care. The kid picks up on social clues about as well as Law does - so, not at all,” replies Ace, getting a chuckle out of Sabo.

“So he was alright, then?”

“I… guess. He wasn’t exactly dancing, if you know what I mean, but… he was alright.”

“How’s he doing? After… y’know.”

“Not so great,” Ace admits. “He’s hurting. He misses them a lot.” 

“They were close.”

“I know.” Ace sighs. “He didn’t cry - at least, I think he didn’t. He just put his forehead down on the table and sat there for a while. It’s pretty hard to watch. But… I just hope to god he’ll be alright, you know?”

“I know.” Sabo sighs. “And are you alright?”

“Me?”

“I mean, you just said it - it was hard to watch. Are you okay? After Luffy, after Blackbeard, after… everything?”

Ace lets out a hollow laugh. “It’s hard to tell. Some moments I feel fantastic.”

“And other moments?”

“Other moments… not so much.” Ace sighs, running a hand through his hair. “I’ll be alright. I will. It’s just a rough time. I know this is a new beginning - I know things are going to get better. It’s just hard for now. Harder than I would have ever thought it could be. This city… it eats you alive, you know?”

“I know,” Sabo admits. “I do. I know the feeling. But better things are coming.”

And then, it happens.

Suddenly, on the street outside, there’s an earsplitting racket. Ace yells out and practically tumbles out of his chair, thinking of the return of Blackbeard, and the war restarting, and explosions and fire and blood-

It’s an alarm. A high pitched, wailing, shrieking alarm that screams through the streets and makes the whole city alight with sound. It’s so loud at the windows rattle. Ace would recognise that sound anywhere. Panic roars through his chest. He meets Sabo’s terrified eyes and it feels like something in him breaks, shatters into a million pieces. 

_ ‘Better things are coming’.  _

_ This can’t happen now. Please god don’t let this happen now.  _

_ We only just got our freedom. _

Screams - real screams that somehow feel even more inhuman than the shrieks of the alarm - break out in the streets. There’s chaos. Hammering footsteps above, the clang of metal on metal, the pounding of running on the street outside. It’s more noise, more activity than there ever was during the Hunt. 

Ace wasn’t nearly this scared hiding under the bed during the Hunt. This is a thousand times worse. 

Upstairs, somebody screams out, as though they’re in mortal pain. Across the street, people are crying and sobbing and yelling and shrieking and pleading and praying and their voices echo through Ace’s head, but even they can’t drown out the wailing of the alarm. Sabo’s breathing is raspy and it sounds like he’s hyperventilating and his hands come up to his face. Ace hears him release a scream into his fingers, voice cracking, body shaking like a leaf and the sight of it breaks him to the very core. 

_ Wake up. Wake up. Please, god let this be a dream.  _

_ This has to be a dream.  _

Ace doesn’t wake up. This is real.

Clumsily, brain so scrambled that he can’t string a coherent thought together, Ace grabs Sabo and pulls him to his chest. Sabo yells out again, anguished, clawing at the front of his sweatshirt and Ace feels desperate, almost raw, as though somebody has stripped him of his skin and he’s already died. His brain scrambles for something,  _ anything  _ he can do to survive. He prays to every god he’s ever heard of. This can’t be the end. It can’t be. 

He’d only just started to live. 

Neither he nor Sabo has the strength to stay upright. They crash into the kitchen counter and slide down it, curling up in the corner of the room, pressed together as though if they can make themselves small enough, it’ll protect them. Sabo yells, voice cracking, pressed into Ace’s chest. Ace holds him tight, sobs racking his body as he presses his face into his blonde hair, and the alarm outside is loud enough to make his ears ring - the terrible, keening call of death. 

“No…!” 

Sabo struggles against nothing, obviously having some kind of anxiety attack, and Ace holds him tighter. He can feel the tears and the panic and the terrible, terrible regret rushing through him. He cries so hard that he can’t breathe. This can’t be happening now. It can’t. 

Then, he remembers;  _ Luffy _ .

Ace half-stands but his legs are shaking too hard to carry him. He tries to clear his head, tries to be heroic and brave and keep his wits about him, but it’s hard - it’s so goddamn hard because he can barely even begin to think straight, and Sabo is still yelling into his hands, curled up on the ground and the alarm is still so loud, screaming through his head. The whole world feels like it’s breaking apart. 

Ace wonders, in the back of his mind, whether the bomb is above them yet. Whether it’s arcing and falling, cutting through the air, and it’s about to hit and they’re all about to be turned to dust and fire and ashes. 

_ No. Stop it, Ace. Think about Luffy. Think about your little brother. _

But he can’t. Not when Sabo is looking up at him, flushed and scared - terrified beyond belief, with tears in his eyes, looking so, so hopeless. Helpless. Ace can’t make himself leave him. His strength leaves him and he falls to his knees, gripping Sabo again. They fall back into the corner and Ace feels blood rush to his head. Is this what it feels like moments before death? It’s not grand, or righteous, or peaceful. It’s blurry and everything hurts and Ace feels like a small child, wishing for something that can’t be. 

“I’m so, so sorry, Sabo.” Ace’s voice comes out wet and croaky and it doesn’t sound at all like his own. “Sabo, I’m so sorry.”

The alarm wails on and Sabo is shaking, and Ace braces himself for death and wonders if it’s really going to end like this. After everything, after surviving so much… they might simply become colateral now, vaporized to nothing just like everybody else in this godforsaken city. The seconds slip by and with every one, Ace feels like he’s running out of time. Death slips closer and closer and he can feel its hands around his throat. 

The front door slams open - the sound is nearly inaudible over the screaming from all directions - and Luffy bursts into the room, eyes bloodshot, hair sticking up in every direction like he’s been running so fast that he hasn’t paid attention to it. He meets Ace’s eyes and then suddenly he’s in between them, yelling inaudibly, crushed into their tiny, panicked huddle. Ace can’t tell whether he’s angry or crying or terrified or all of the above - everything is confused now, Ace’s head feels fuzzy. The anticipation sets his whole body on fire. 

”T-Thank you,” Ace chokes out. “Thank you for loving me-”

Luffy yells out, hands over his head as if he can somehow protect himself from the bomb with his bare hands. There are feathers everywhere - Ace realises that he’s so panicked that he’s malting, and as he glances at the red gold feathers scatter across the grimy floor, he feels like parts of his very being are being stripped away and he’s watching them leave him. 

_ Is this what death feels like? _

And suddenly… the alarm stops. 

Ace’s ears are ringing. There is terrible, tense silence for a moment. He’s is sure they have seconds left now - maybe the bomb has hit already and they’re split-seconds from being blown to pieces - and he squeezes his eyes shut, tensing up, ready for the explosion and the heat and the feeling of flesh being stripped from his bones. There’s no sound. The whole world seems to hold its breath. Sabo is so pale, so grey that it looks like he’s already died. 

After what could have been a second or a year, somebody out on the street calls out.

“False alarm!”

For a moment, Ace can’t believe it. It seems so utterly bizarre that he can’t comprehend it. He feels sensation come back to his body slowly, like each of his limbs is reattaching itself one by one, just as the shouts of relief begin and movement comes back to the grey district and people are out on the street - he can hear them - yelling out the news to anybody and everybody who can hear them. The world comes back to life.

”We’re alive,” Luffy says quietly, “Ace, we’re alive. We’re  _ alive-” _

A choked, breathy laugh of relief tears from Ace’s throat. “We’re alive! We lived!” 

Luffy crashes into his stomach, tackling him like a wrestler and grinning up at him as they tumble back onto the floor. “We’re alive! We didn’t die! Ace, we really didn’t die!”

“Holy  _ shit _ ,” Ace says quietly, “Holy shit!”

“I know!”

“I’ve never been that scared in my fucking life-” Ace grabs Luffy, musses up his hair, feeling the most joy he’s ever felt. “We really lived-”

Sabo, he realises vaguely, hasn’t moved. 

Suddenly, out on the street, somebody yells something Ace can’t make out. Then somebody else calls out and the message spreads like wildfire and when it finally reaches Ace’s ears clearly, it makes his whole body go cold. 

“The nuke hit the East city!”

Ace’s euphoria dies in a split second. 

Some people sound happy to say it - others, mournful. Their neighbouring city is hardly a familiar place, but… Ace’s heart sinks like a stone. There are two times the amount of people living there than here. All of them are inevitably dead now, gone without a second thought. Did they get the alarm too? Did they huddle together in their houses and pray? Did they… really die?

Abruptly, hs joy at their survival is dimmed. Luffy looks a little put-out, but instead of mentioning the depravity their neighbours have suffered, he turns to Sabo, who still has yet to move. “Sabo?”

Ace turns to look at him, too. The blonde is still sitting there, jammed in the corner, his skinny long-limbed frame huddled against the wall. He’s staring into nothing and his hair is sticking up everywhere and his red-rimmed eyes make him look even paler than he is. His eyes… Ace has seen him determined. He’s seen love in those eyes. He’s seen outrage. He’s even seen them look so defeated that it hurts. 

But he’s never seen Sabo look so  _ angry _ .

Luffy tries to reach for his arm and Sabo seems to snap back to reality. Abruptly he’s on his feet and Luffy shifts closer to Ace as Sabo lashes out, kicking one of the kitchen chairs so hard that it hits the wall and snaps into three pieces. The wood clatters to the ground and Sabo throws his fist against the kitchen counter, cursing with words Ace has never imagined he could say. Sabo is a hurricane, a wildfire as he slams the door of the kitchen cupboard so hard that the hinge snaps, and then he seems at a loss for what else to break and he kicks the kitchen door so hard that it leaves a crack in it, and strips of peeling paint are torn away from the rotting wood. 

Ace stands. “Sabo-”

“No, Ace!” Sabo turns on him, eyes wild, trembling with anger. “Don’t you get it?! Don’t you get how many people died?! Don’t you understand how close  _ you  _ came to dying-”

“Please, just calm down-”

“I can’t calm down!” Sabo hurls his fist against the wall and his stump hits the surface hard. His face erupts with pain and it seems to only make him more angry and Ace can only stare, slightly transfixed, as he rages. “I can’t calm down! Not until this godforsaken fucking world changes! I can’t calm down and I can’t stop fighting - I can’t believe I ever even considered stopping-”

“It’s not your responsibility to fix the world, Sabo, it’s not! Just calm-”

“If I don’t try to make things better,  _ who will _ .” 

The determination with which Sabo says it makes Ace see him for the first time as a revolutionary - as somebody fighting for a better life. But Sabo is just a kid, for fuck’s sake, and Ace has never wanted more to take the weight off his shoulders that he seems to have placed there of his own volition. 

“I promise we’ll change things,” Ace says, steely-voiced. “But for now, you can’t do anything, okay? We gotta stay calm - we gotta keep our heads.”

“No.” Sabo runs a hand back through his hair. “No. Not anymore. I refuse to carry on waiting. I  _ can’t  _ carry on waiting.”

“Then what are you gonna do?” Luffy asks.

Sabo reaches into his pocket and pulls out a slip of paper. “I’m going to see the revolutionaries.”

* * *

Sabo slams the apartment door behind him, heart throwing itself against his ribs in his chest, and breaks into a run. He knows the address - their base is uptown, in an abandoned sky-high on the edge of the industrial district. The wind rushes through his hair and stings his eyes as he sprints down the steps and out of their apartment block and onto the street. The streets are heaving with people, and the shouts and the cries of relief echo mockinging in Sabo’s ears as he pushes through the crowds, without caring who he might shove over. The time for politeness is past.

Street after street passes in a hazy blur. Sabo breathes heavily, limbs aching, but he doesn’t stop. His feet pound the cracked asphalt and through the pain and the chaos he runs, uncaring of the people around him, uncaring of anything but his destination. He feels desperate, like a dying man running to the last drop of water for miles around. Nothing can stop him now - he knows that, like it’s a fact of his very being. He would rather die than stop now. The fire in his heart is back, burning brighter than it has for years and years and with every footstep the embers are stoked, growing hotter and hotter. 

_ So many dead. Too many _ . 

He’s not going to let anybody else die.

It’s one thing after another after another and Sabo is at the end of their tether. When was the last time he or Ace or Luffy truly felt safe for more than a few days? From living on the stacks to the shooting to the explosion, and then the Hunt and Blackbeard’s attack and Wakeshead and the war and now… this. This, which brought them all closer to death than all of the other things combined. This atrocity that nobody can even begin to combat.

And when will they be safe? When can all of this end? Sabo talks so much about changing the world but he feels useless, helpless, because he’s tried  _ so hard _ and at the end of the day… the world still has yet to change.

Uptown is approaching now. Skyscrapers loom over Sabo and he thinks of the Stacks. Were there Stacks on the outskirts of the East city? Yes, definitely - he read it somewhere. There must have been thousands living in the stacks alone and the whole city was wiped out, completely levelled. No thought was given to whether the people were human or Fae, old or young, rich or poor. They all just  _ died _ , terrified and alone with nobody willing to help them and there’s a horrible, hollow ache in Sabo’s chest that he can’t get rid of. Because what does a lost hand matter? Why should any of them care about things as trivial as gang wars when death is always as close as it was today?

It was a horrible, chilling reminder that the world outside of this city exists, and that that world hates them and with the push of a button, that world could rain hell on their heads and nobody would be able to stop it.

_ What is freedom? _ Sabo finds himself wondering desperately, drawing in deep, gasping gulps of air as his lungs tighten in his chest.  _ I’ve been fighting for freedom this whole time, but what does freedom matter when not everybody has it? _

The base of the revolutionaries is tall but not overly so - it seems to move against the grey clouds above as Sabo stands beneath it, shadowed by its gargantuan width and height, staring up at it. He feels the last of his reservations melt away. If anybody can help him, these people can. 

Sabo doesn’t know too much about the revolutionaries, but what he does know is good. They call themselves the Revolutionary Army, but in reality they work an underground circuit, staying out of the public eye and attempting to change things from the shadows. In the past, living alone on the Stacks, Sabo considered seeking them out to join them. Their cause is close to his own. But at the end of the day, he always decided not to for one reason or another. 

At least, he did until now. Now, he has stopped being afraid. 

Sabo strides up to the base of the building. The main doors are boarded up, still maintaining the impression that the building is abandoned, so he rounds the building until he finds a small, discreet entrance on the left hand side. The alleyway it is situated in is empty but Sabo feels like he’s being watched by something in the shadows. Still breathing heavily, heart pounding incredibly hard, he raises his fist and knocks on the grimy metal door. 

_ I’m going to do something insane.  _


	36. The Thief

**** After Sabo leaves, the life seeps from the apartment in an instant. The door slams and Ace feels his heart go cold. Luffy steps towards the door, looking conflicted, like he half wants to go after him - Ace puts a hand on his arm and stops him. 

“No, Luffy. Let him go.”

Luffy looks up at him, face creased in confusion. “Why? Why can’t we go after him?”

“Come here.” Ace pulls Luffy into the living room and onto the couch. The sounds of relief and anguish in equal measure from outside are still audible, surrounding them. It feels like the whole city has been set alight. “Sabo… he’s selfless. Too selfless. He cares more about the world than he does himself.”

“I knew that,” Luffy says. “I mean, I’ve met him, of course I knew that.”

“Yeah. And that’s why he’s family and we care about him so much; it’s because he’s so accepting, right? It’s because he’s  _ Sabo. _ ”

“Right.”

“So this… this is just Sabo being Sabo.” Ace sighs, curling his wings inwards. “I mean, it’s obvious that he would be upset about people from the east dying, right?”

“Yeah, I guess…”

“So he’s going to try to do something. I guess all we can hope is that it ain’t something too drastic.”

“But why can’t we go after him?”

“Did you see the look in his eyes?” Ace shivers a little. “I doubt we could have stopped him if we tried. He’s hurting and he’s been through a lot and… we just have to have faith that he’ll come back.”

“Do you think he will?”

“Of course,” Ace says, stomach churning with doubt. Because… deep down, he doesn’t know whether he believes that.

Sabo’s always had something in him that Ace doesn’t. It’s a part of his very being, something Ace can’t imagine him without. He’s got this unshakable, terrifying will to change things and it’s so strong sometimes that Ace knows he and Luffy couldn’t ever come close to changing it, or chaining it down. It’s driven by a strange force that’s almost empathy; the same force that must have prompted him to debate when he was younger, and the same force that makes him attend every protest in the city. A need for justice - real justice, not the shit the government dishes out - that’s strong enough to control every decision he makes.

Ace knows, with complete certainty, that he can’t change the way Sabo is. The best he can hope for is that at the end of the day, Sabo will return and he’ll continue to be their family and the fire inside him won’t get hot enough to burn him alive. 

Luffy decides to go back to visit his crew again, but then puts it off, saying that he’ll wait until Sabo gets back to leave. It’s too late to go after him now, as Ace only has a vague idea where Revolutionary HQ is and Luffy has no clue. Ace can sense that they’re both restless, pacing the apartment, and with every passing minute the sky outside grows darker. The reality of the past few hours sets in like a thick, dull cold on his skin - the East city is gone, leveled completely by a missile, and Sabo is out on the streets alone and death nearly took all three of them. 

Ace had nearly forgotten that the world outside their lives existed. 

Soon, his energy tails out. Ace settles on the couch, checking the time every three minutes. He’s twitchy and every sound outside sounds a little like Sabo. Luffy sits in the kitchen and Ace can hear him jump at every noise, as though hoping it’s Sabo coming back. The minutes creep by slower and slower and with every one, Ace’s worry grows. Two hours. Three hours. Still no Sabo. 

Eventually, at four hours, Luffy slinks into the living room. Ace pats the couch next to him and Luffy settles in, slumping against Ace like a sleepy, overly-touchy octopus. For a while, neither of them speaks. The air is thick with worry but Ace is glad Luffy is here - if he was with his crew, Ace would feel even more alone. 

“It’s not the same without Sabo,” Luffy says eventually. “Why can’t he just get back already?”

“Give him time - he’ll be back. He will. He’s just…” Ace can’t finish the sentence. “I’m sure he’s okay. Do you really think he would leave us after all this? Nah, he’ll be back. He’s just out blowing off steam, probably, he’ll be alright.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” Ace messes up Luffy’s already messy hair. “Anyway, you need to stop worrying before I smack it out of ya. You’ve never worried about anything, you shouldn’t start now, kid.”

It works - Luffy laughs out loud and turns over, jabbing his fingers into Ace’s ribs in an attempt to tickle him. Ace curls in on himself, gasping for breath as he tries to shove Luffy off, and then they’re wrestling on the ground and there are feathers absolutely everywhere. Luffy’s elbow catches Ace’s cheek and in retaliation, he knees him in the stomach. Luffy laughs, seemingly unbothered, and goes for Ace’s ribs again.

But soon, inevitably, the melancholy settles back in. Ace sighs and pulls himself back onto the couch, yawning. He checks the time. Four hours and five minutes. Fuck. 

Lying on the floor, Luffy says, “I thought you wanted  _ me _ to stop worrying.”

“Shuddup.”

Suddenly, there it is - the sound Ace has been wishing for for hours. There’s a key in the lock and the front door opens and then closes. On the floor, Luffy tenses up. Ace stands and moves towards the living room door-

Sabo gets there first. Standing in the doorway, the blonde is shivering slightly (it must be freezing outside at this time of night) but he’s…  _ grinning _ . There’s a wide, genuine smile on his face. That’s the thing Ace had least expected to see and he freezes, watching Sabo lean against the doorframe, looking utterly content.

“Hi.”

Luffy sits up. “Sabo!”

“Hey, Lu.” 

Sabo steps into the room. There’s a strange new air about him, like he’s been changed slightly since he left - it’s as though warmth follows him into the room and Ace feels his own lips curl upwards at the sight of how genuine Sabo’s smile is. He looks so, so… happy. 

However, the confusion is still there. “Sabo? Where’ve you been?”

“That doesn’t matter,” Sabo says flippantly. He clambers onto the couch and grabs Ace’s hand tightly. “Ace, we gotta go to Wakeshead.”

“Wait, what?!”

“We have to go back there! I’ve decided.” Sabo stares right into Ace’s eyes. “I’ve done a lot of thinking. We can’t just leave them in the dark - we have to go back, to tell them that we’re all okay, so you two can reunite with the ones you love.”

Ace and Luffy exchange uneasy glances. Luffy turns to Sabo and asks, “But... where were you? We were worried…”

And for the first time, Ace sees a hint of uncomfortableness in Sabo’s face. “Don’t worry! I was just… wandering. Thinking.” 

Ace could see that false bravado from a mile away. And he doesn’t buy it for a second. 

“Sabo, cut the crap. What happened?!”

Sabo looks Ace full in the face and seems to slump a little. Reluctance enters his face. He knows he’s been rumbled and he looks from Ace to Luffy and back again. “Ace… I’m going to do something stupid.”

“...What?”

“I want to do something stupid. And the stupid thing means I have to go to Wakeshead. Can you accept that?”

“No, not really.” Ace frowns. “It would be better if you told us what the stupid thing was. Sab, we were really worried, just tell us what you’re planning!” 

“I’m sorry I worried you,” Sabo says quietly. “I didn’t mean to do that. I just… just trust me on this, okay? Trust that I know what I’m doing. Trust that the stupid thing is going to save lives. Can you trust me on that?”

“Of course I trust you,” Ace sighs. “But you gotta tell us more.  _ Please _ .”

Sabo deflates, still gripping Ace’s hand. “I can’t.”

“What do you mean you can’t?” 

“I mean, I can’t.” Sabo doesn’t meet his eyes. “Look. Right now, more than anything, I need to go back to Wakeshead. And soon, if it’s possible. So please, please have faith in me?”

“Is it going to be dangerous?”

“No,” Sabo says, and Ace knows he’s lying.

“Is it going to seperate us?”

“...No,” Sabo says again. 

It looks like he’s lying this time, too.

“I don’t like this,” Ace says. “I really don’t. I thought we didn’t keep secrets?”

“We don’t. I promise we don’t.” Sabo glances between them again. “Look. I love you two, more than anything in the world, and I would sacrifice ten cities before I let them kill you. But I care about the world, too. Would you have faith in me if I told you that this could save the world?”

Ace feels like everything is moving a little too quickly. “Sabo…”

“Because it can. I know it can.” Sabo raises his chin. “I know this can save the world, Ace, and that’s all I want to do. It’ll even be able to keep you two safe. Is that enough?”

“You saw the revolutionaries, didn’t you?” Luffy asks. 

“I… can’t tell you that.”

“Did they get you to do something?”

“I can’t tell you that, either.”

“Sab _ oo _ -”

“I’m sorry.”

“You know what?” Ace stands up, making Sabo jump. “Fine. We’ll go back to Wakeshead, if it means that much to you. But I want you to know that no matter what, Sabo Portgas, you’re not leaving us. You’re one of us. And if anything tries to keep us apart, I’ll fight for us to be together again until we are, okay?”

Sabo looks at the floor. “Okay.”

“Marco gave me his number. I’ll call him, ask him to pick us up tomorrow morning. Alright?” 

“Ace, thank you so-”

“Don’t!” Ace raises a hand. “I’m only doing this because I know you’d find a way to get there anyway if I didn’t. And I know you find it hard to believe, Sabo, but we _ care _ . We care about _ you _ . You can’t forget that.”

“I… okay. I won’t. And I promise I care about you, too.”

“Good. That’s all that matters.” Ace starts towards the door, fishing his phone out of his pocket. “I’m going to call Marco.” 

The last thing he sees as he leaves the room is Luffy climbing up onto the couch and onto Sabo, curling his arms around him. Then, Ace wanders into the kitchen and dials Marco’s number, leaning back against the kitchen counter. He takes a deep breath to steady himself and hits ‘call’, worry churning in his stomach alongside a strange feeling that is almost like excitement. He realises, abruptly, that he’s  _ excited _ to talk to Marco again.

The man picks up on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Uh, Marco? It’s… it’s Ace.”

A sharp intake of breath. “One second.” There’s a scratchy sound, like somebody putting their hand over the phone, and Marco’s muffled voice says, “Oyaji, I’m not particularly hungry tonight. Excuse me.”

Whitebeard’s voice makes a muffled noise of assent. There’s a cacophony of background noise and Ace realises that Marco must be in the hall, eating. Ace imagines the hall and the food and the thought of it makes his stomach churn. It’s hard to believe that Sabo really wants to go back there for anything.

There are a few moments of indistinct noise, and then the background noise fades. There’s the sound of a door closing. Then, Marco speaks.

“Ace?”

“Uh, hi.”

“Are you alright? What’s the situation? Is there anything we can do to help-”

“Marco!” Ace interrupts him. “Marco, stop. It’s okay. We’re all okay.”

A deep breath of relief. “Thank god. I was worried. What’s happened?”

“The war is over. Blackbeard’s dead. Sabo stabbed him in the head,” Ace says, without much feeling. “We’re all alive - beat up, but alive.”

“Sabo killed him?” A pause. “He didn’t seem like the type…”

“Sabo seems like a lot of things,” Ace says vaguely. “But that’s not what I called about.”

“What is this about, then? How can I help you?”

“There was a nuke dropped on the East city earlier.” Ace gets straight to the point. “Millions are dead. Our city is in shock. We thought it was going to be us.”

Marco sighs in relief. “It’s a good thing it wasn’t.”

Ace bristles a little. “Maybe it is, I don’t know. But nothing changes the fact that people are dead and it… bothers Sabo, and my little brother. We’re all shook up. Is it okay if we… come back for a while? Just as long as we need? Y’know, so Luffy can see Shanks and I can see all of you and Sabo can be safe for a while. I mean, it’s not that we didn’t want to come back before- well, I mean, we didn’t really but- it’s just-”

“Ace.”

“Yeah?”

“You’re babbling.” Marco’s voice is warm. “Of course it’s okay. We don’t mind at all. People have been missing you for days. We’d all be so glad to have you back.”

“Thank you, Marco. It… means a lot to me.” Ace sighs, glancing across to the living room. “Things are complicated here.”

“I can imagine. When should I come to pick you up, yoi?”

“Tomorrow morning? We can meet you outside the pub if you want.”

“That would be great. 0800?”

“Perfect.” Ace sighs. “Thank you again, Marco. So much. We need this.”

“I know.” Ace can hear the smile in Marco’s voice. “Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“Goodnight, Marco.”

“See you soon, Ace. Oh, and one more thing- are you sure Sabo will be alright with this, yoi? Because he seemed to practically hate us last time-”

Ace ends the call. He leans back against the counter in the dark, greyish room and closes his eyes. When did everything get so complicated? When did his life turn upside down? It’s hard to say. But it all seems to trace back to Sabo. Ace thinks back to how they first met - alone and cold and injured, trapped under the bridge, separated by the walls that divided their species and classes and everything else. So much has changed. So much has happened. 

They’re all alive. 

Ace tries to convince himself that that’s all that matters.

* * *

Marco takes a deep breath, opens the doors and steps back into the dining hall. A few eyes flit up to see him as he steps through the doorway and approaches the table. He can feel a strange rush of determination beneath his skin that he doesn’t think he’s ever felt before. Oyaji sees him and tilts his head, obviously wondering why Marco is back. Marco doesn’t offer the unspoken question any kind of answer.

“Everybody!” 

Marco reaches the table and stays standing, looking down at his family. Heads turn in his direction, confused, and soon every eye in the hall is on him. Marco takes a deep breath and steels himself. This is going to be tough, but it has to be done. 

“I just got a call from Ace, yoi. Tomorrow, he and his brothers are coming back.”

Conversation roars to life down the table in an instant as people react to this. Marco ses a mixture of joy and concern on faces. Soon, everybody turns back to him as conversation dies down again. Somebody calls out, “Why?”

“A few reasons. There was a conflict and they’re all slightly... shaken up right now, yoi. And there was also a bomb threat earlier. None of them feel safe. They’ve asked for our protection and I intend to give that to them.”

“But what about the blonde guy?”

“Yeah, he  _ hates _ us!”

“And Shanks’ kid?”

“Can’t it just be Ace?”

“No, it can’t, yoi.” A flare of command rushes into Marco’s voice, and everybody falls silent. “And that kind of thing was what I needed to talk to you about. All of you.”

“Son?” Whitebeard asks. 

“Listen.” Marco sighs. “The reason they left in the first place is because… it’s because of us. Because we treated them badly. And before you deny it, let me speak - look. Ace… he’s not the Ace we used to know. He’s changed. He’s not a kid anymore; he’s a young man with a family and a home and a life and if we keep driving that family away and trying to pull him away from his home, he’s just going to leave again.”

Marco is in his stride now. “I’ve met all three of them. The ‘blonde guy’ - his name is Sabo, and he’s one of the most selfless, brave people I think I’ve ever heard of. Ace told me all about him when they were here before and frankly, Ace seems to think that Sabo is one of the best people in existence, by the way he talks about him. He’s a great person and if anybody here paid him a shred of respect and treated him like a friend - instead of just somebody getting in the way of getting to Ace - maybe he would have stayed. 

“And the kid? His name is Luffy. And Ace cares about him a lot - even more than I think most of all of you care about Ace, for god’s sake. If you had been even a  _ little _ bit decent to them, they might have stayed. All three of them. But we treated them like dogshit and now they’re gone, and even though they’re coming back for a little while… I can only hope that they stay. God knows we’ve given them no reason to. And if you want them to, then you have to treat all three of them well. Do you understand?”

There’s no reply but Marco can see it in their faces - everybody is thinking about it, and as the guilt sets in, it’s obvious that they’ve taken in on board. Marco is glad for that. Without another word, he turns on his heel and strides out of the room, leaving his family behind in the dining hall. 

He can only hope they actually listen this time. But if there’s one thing Marco knows for sure about his family, it’s that they find it very, very hard to change. 

* * *

 

Dragon’s office is on the very top floor of the skyscraper. The lifts aren’t working today - they’re temperamental at best - so Koala takes the stairs, bounding up them two at a time to build up a sweat. Her spirits are high and by the time she gets up to Dragon’s room, she feels bouncy and full of energy. Brushing a strand of sweaty hair out of her face, she knocks twice. “Sir?”

“Come on in, Koala.”

Koala steps into the room, shutting the door behind her. It’s not the most well-lit room in the world, but she can see Dragon clearly by the light of a reading lamp on his desk. The man is framed by a huge, glass window behind him that looks out over the city. The night is clear and the view stretches out over the districts, right out to the Stacks and beyond. The city lights are white and gold, blinking up at them from miles below. The view is familiar, but it always manages to take her breath away. 

“Dragon, sir - Sabo made it home. We had a spy trail him to the grey district.”

“Of course you did.” Dragon sighs, not even looking up from his paperwork. “The boy is capable, Koala, he’s not going to keel over and die.”

“I know that! I was just… relieved to reunite with him, is all.” Koala takes a seat in front of the desk, smiling fondly. “It was good to see him again. I don’t want to lose him so quickly after that.”

“Yes. It was a… heartwarming reunion. I seem to remember you crying for at least ten minutes-”

“Dragon!”

The man grins. His grins always look slightly savage, but Koala has gotten used to them to the point where they don’t scare her anymore. Much. 

“Any _ way _ ,” Koala says pointedly, “He agreed to the plan?

“Yes. We were right in believing that he’s been to Wakeshead in the last few weeks, and he was more than willing to do it. That boy is… more driven than I could have imagined. He has a hunger. Reminds me of a kid I used to know.”

“Who?”

“Just a kid.”

“Why do you always have to be so cryptic?”

Dragon chuckles. “Anyway. He’s going to do it. He says he can get us the papers in a few days at most.”

“Do you believe that?” Koala bites her lip. “I mean, sure, he’s competent, but-”

“I believe him.” Dragon stands, moving towards the window, and the city lights light up the jagged tattoo on the side of his face.  “If he says he can do it… I think he might just manage it.”

“Alright, Dragon, sir… I believe you.” Koala folds and unfolds her hands in her lap. “And he was alright with doing that to the people who took him in?”

“I told you; the kid’s driven. To the n’th degree. His willpower is admirable.” Dragon sighs. “And yes. He told me he doesn’t agree with how little they care about the world. Said that he would like to show them what they could do if they just tried to help, even a little.”

“That’s just like him.” Koala sighs. “Alright. I guess… now, we wait.”

“Yes.” 

Dragon stares out over the city with an unreadable expression on his face. His eyes roam over the grey district and Koala watches, curiously, as he eventually turns away from the window and sits back down. He’s still grinning that unerring grin. It might set anybody else on edge, but the sight of it makes the knot of tension in Koala’s shoulders release. 

Dragon chuckles. “And you know what? With that kid… something tells me we won’t be waiting for too long.”

 


	37. Electriglass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ONLY A CHAP LEFT UNTIL THE EPILOGUE   
> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

The day dawns sharp and cold and clear, the ground coated with frost. The trio step out into the morning and make good pace, starting towards the pub on the other end of the district. Sabo, in between the two brothers, watches his breath condense on the morning air, turning into silvery mist in front of his face. It's so cold that his wrist aches like fire. It feels as though ice has coated the raw flesh there itself, creeping up through his bones and to his heart. He feels detached, like something inside of him has gone cold and rotted away in the night.

_I have to do this. Even if they hate me, I have to do this._

_I can't let anybody else die._

War drums in his chest pound hard and fast, along with his pulse in his ears. Every step makes Sabo feel less human than the last. Beside him, Ace makes no move to take his hand, and Sabo desperately wants him to - more than anything, he wants to grab Ace tight and not let to and tell him that he's so, so sorry - but nothing happens. Ace's face is colder than the freezing air.

On Sabo's other side, Luffy looks strangely dejected, like he wants to say something but he can't get the words out. Sabo wants to say sorry to him, too. He wonders briefly if, when Luffy has to choose between Ace and Sabo, he will go with Sabo. After a moment, Sabo decides that he won't make him choose. It's not even up for discussion. Luffy would choose to stay with Ace in a heartbeat.

Sabo remembers, briefly, the hate that used to be in Ace's face when he looked at him. The loathing that twisted inside of him like an infection. He doesn't think he would be able to stand it if Ace looked at him like that again, not after he's seen Ace look at him with pure, unadulterated affection. It would break him.

_I have to do this. Forget how I feel. Just do it._

The guilt is like a cold, heavy weight on his chest. It's an unbearable feeling. Every moment makes it ache more fiercely and for a while, Sabo entertains the idea of putting it all off. What if he just forgot what Dragon told him to do? What if he just decided that, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter? It would be so, so easy just to put the whole thing off, and start acting more like Ace -  _the whole world could explode and as long as the people I care about were safe, it wouldn't matter to me_.

But Sabo finds that no matter how hard he tries, he can't force himself to think like that. Doing this could -  _would_ \- help millions and millions of people. It could change the world. It could stop the next bombing. It could even keep Ace and Luffy safe for good - it would help to build a world where kids like Luffy can grow up safe and happy, not starving on the streets and hated by everybody who meets their eye. And Sabo could help to build that world and… no matter how much it breaks Sabo's heart, he knows he has to do this.

Because he always wanted to be a revolutionary, right? He always wanted to make the world into a better place. And this is his chance. This is what he's been waiting for for years. Even if it hurts to think that Ace and Luffy are going to be hurt beyond belief…

A part of Sabo withers at that thought.

 _There's_ the kicker. Because… Sabo does push people away. It's a part of who he is; a part that he hates, sure, but a part that he can't get rid of. He pushed his parents away. He pushed Law away. He's pushed away everybody he's ever loved and it's only a matter of time until Ace and Luffy realise it. He might as well get away now, before he breaks their hearts and makes them hate him and they leave him, too.

Ace's words ring through his head.  _I would fight until we were back together_.

Sabo almost believes them. But not quite.

"It's good to see you all alive, yoi."

Marco's voice breaks him out of his thoughts. Sabo realises with a jolt that they're all standing outside the pub, in front of Marco. The last time Sabo was here, he was bleeding and shaking, leaning back against the wall, having just escaped from Blackbeard. Now, frost covers the bloodstains on that patch of wall. Sabo catches Ace glance at them.

"Hey, Marco!" Luffy bounces up to him, beaming. "I didn't miss you at all."

"Thanks for the honesty," Marco says drily. "Are you three alright?"

"We're okay," Ace says stiffly. "Well… yeah. Yeah, we're fine."

"That's good, yoi." Marco sighs. "Alright. The jeep is parked a few blocks away. Let's move. They're expecting us back."

"You told them?" Ace asks, as they start to walk.

"Yes, yoi. But I made sure they know that they have to be a little less tactless than last time." Marco laughs a little. "They took it surprisingly well."

Sabo stays silent, not paying much attention to their conversation. He runs over the plan in his head. If he plays his cards right, he can do it tonight and get out of there quickly. The quicker he gets it over with, the better. He can be back in the city by tomorrow morning and he can be with Dragon and the revolutionaries and Ace and Luffy will forget about him soon enough, Sabo tries to convince himself, just like everybody else.

If Ace could hear his thoughts right now, he would probably make a comment about how Sabo was being 'too selfless', and he would tell him that the world 'wasn't his responsibility to fix'. But deep down, it would irritate him. A lot of stuff that Sabo does probably irritates him, even if he won't admit it.

Sabo's eyes sting and he forces himself to blink the sudden tears away, hit with a rush of sadness that makes his shoulders curl. He always knew that it was going to end like this. It was only a matter of time before they realised that he's not a good person, that he's somebody they would rather not be around. He just has to grin and bear it and try to make sure he doesn't hurt them too much by leaving. If he does it himself, it'll hurt less than if he left them to decide by themselves to desert him.

_Don't think about it. Don't let it affect you. There's no other way. Just keep making excuses and pretend that this is fine._

"Sabo, yoi? Are you alright?"

Sabo realises that some of his inner turmoil must have shown on his face. He forces a smile, not meeting Marco's eyes. "I'm alright, really, I'm just tired. Let's get to the jeep."

"Okay, yoi…"

Marco sounds dubious, and Sabo feels Ace's concerned gaze, but he ignores it. He just has to get through the day. That's all that matters. The four of them trek in silence through the grey-white city, and Sabo tries to keep his mind on one continuous cycle;  _get the instructions. Get out of there. It'll help people. It's everything you've ever wanted to do. You have to do this._

When they reach the jeep, Ace sits in the front seat and Sabo and Luffy take the back. Ace and Marco engage in hushed conversation that Sabo doesn't try to listen to as they drive out into the Wilds, and Luffy taps a nonsensical rhythm out onto the window with his fingertips, not attempting to start a conversation. It's painfully tense. The journey seems to take ten times as long as it should and by the time they enter the electriglass dome, the world turning blue the second they're inside, Sabo's resolve is steely. There's no going back now.

Time starts to move quicker. The jeep parks up and they get out, and Sabo takes a deep, steadying breath as they approach the hall. This is it. Inside, the entrance hall is empty and Marco leads the three of them into the dining hall, where he says the rest of the family is gathered, ready to see them.

The second Sabo enters the room, just behind Ace, he feels tense. Every eye in the hall is on them. Then Ace takes a step forwards and his family are rushing towards them in clusters, moving to greet Ace warmly. There's a change in their demeanor - some of them shake Sabo's hand and slap his back and a few of them even apologise for how they acted before. It's obvious that Ace is still the only one they really care about, but they're trying and all that is down to Marco and what he must of told them. Sabo shoots him a thankful look over a sea of heads.

After a while, the hype dies. Luffy goes off to catch up with an incredibly relieved Shanks (who is apparently still refusing to talk to Marco), and Ace is pulled into a seat at the dining table to entertain his family. Sabo takes a deep breath and spies a seat just in front of Edward Newgate. This is the moment. It's going to take willpower - a lot of it at that - but there's no other way.

The plan is in action.

Sabo sits in front of Newgate. The man looks surprised, and a little hostile, but Sabo shoots him his best apologetic smile and the man relaxes a little.  _Here we go_.

"Newgate," Sabo says. "I, uh… I wanted to thank you for letting us stay here. We needed it. You're very generous."

The man blinks, and then smiles a fatherly smile, apparently approving of Sabo's new point of view. "It's not a problem. A brother of Ace is family to all of us."

"I also wanted to…" Sabo takes a deep breath. "Apologise. For what I said last time, about you being selfish. I was wrong. I've… thought it over, and I understand your stance. I was ignorant and I was wrong about all of this. All I can do is ask for your forgiveness. You were right."

"I... " Newgate nods. "Of course, son. I hope we can keep from fighting over this further."

"Of course." Sabo smiles through gritted teeth. "I admire you and your family for being so resilient."

Newgate nods. "Marco mentioned that there was some trouble in the city?"

Sabo laughs, slightly uncomfortable. "Oh, just a scuffle. We're all alright."

"That's a nasty head wound."

"Yeah. But I've had worse." Sabo gestures wordlessly to his burn scars. "And a lot of our problems are out of the window, now that one of our enemies is gone and we have your protection."

Whitebeard narrows his eyes. "You're planning on staying here?"

"I think so, yes. If Ace and Luffy stayed here, they would be completely safe, and-"

"Wouln't you be staying too, son?"

Sabo freezes.  _Fuck_. "Oh, yes, of course. Sorry. If you allowed me…?"

Whitebeard nods, still wearing that fatherly smile. Sabo wants to smack it off his face. "You're always welcome here."

"Thank you, Newgate," Sabo says in the most sincere voice he can muster. "Your generosity… I can't even begin to thank you for taking us in."

Newgate nods - a conspiratorial thing, as though Sabo has shared a secret with him - and turns back to his food. Only then does Sabo allow himself to breathe, letting his chest relax. It's hard - immensely so - to pretend like this. It's hard to seem truthful when every word that comes out of his mouth is lie.

After a few minutes of silence between them, Sabo finally asks the question. "Newgate… Could I ask you about something?"

Ace's father nods. "Go ahead."

"Well, I'm pretty curious about the Electriglass," Sabo says, trying to seem innocently interested. "It seems really interesting - an incredible piece of technology. Do you know anything about who created it?"

"An old friend." Newgate's eyes grow faraway. "The father of a man I knew as regulator. Near the end of my time at the seat of power, I knew that things were growing more dangerous. I knew that I had to find a place where I could keep those people I cared about - my family - safe. I visited this man and managed to employ his help. He gave my the instructions on how to construct electriglass on the day he died. My sons and I constructed this dome together."

Sabo tries to stay calm, ignoring the anger bubbling in his chest. "And do you know what it's made of?"

"Not entirely - this was a long time ago - but it was mostly just plates of plexiglass imbued with lead and a few other things, and coated with a thin layer of enhanced conductive-"

Whitebeard stops, suddenly. His brow furrows with confusion and, Sabo notes with despair, suspicion. He looks down at Sabo with narrowed eyes and Sabo unconsciously shrinks back slightly. Fuck.

"...You're very curious," Newgate says. His voice is cold. A few people around glance over at them. "Any particular reason for that?"

Sabo tries to keep his voice casual. "No reason, sir. It's just fascinating to me. I've always been so interested in technology and the electriglass is a type I've never encountered."

Whitebeard stares at him for a moment, and Sabo stays very still, keeping that relaxed, inconspicuous expression on his face. After a moment, Newgate nods slowly, still looking slightly suspicious but seemingly convinced. Sabo does his best not to slump with relief. Thank  _god_.

"Well," Whitebeard says slowly, "I do still have the original instructions, if you would like to take a look…?"

Sabo keeps his every movement controlled. "That would be amazing! Wow, thank you so much!"

Newgate smiles again.  _Ugh_. "They're in my study - I will show you after we've finished eating. Now, please, eat as much as you wish."

* * *

Sabo goes off with Whitebeard after they've all finished breakfast. Ace is immediately suspicious, but he doesn't try to follow them. Whatever Sabo is planning, Ace knows that he and Luffy will support it. Sabo could probably kill somebody, Ace realises and they would help him hide the body.

And if he's planning something that might separate them... Ace is going to have to make sure he knows that it won't work. Not after all this.

No way in hell.

* * *

Sabo stares down at the papers in his hands.

He could run. Right now. He could run as hard and fast as he could and get away from this place, taking the instructions with him. He could run to the city and get to Dragon and then, with these mere papers, they could change the whole world. They could do it. The opportunity is right here, in his hands-

Newgate takes the papers back and puts them in the glass cabinet beside his desk. He locks it - there are two padlocks - and puts both keys into his pocket. Sabo tries to crush the churning disappointment in his chest. There'll be time later, surely. There has to be.

"Alright, well, you got a good look." Whitebeard smiles down at him. "If you ever want to take another look at them, let me know. But remember - they don't leave this room."

"Okay! I'll bear that in mind. Thank you," Sabo replies. "It's getting pretty close to midday - I looked through them for a while. Is it alright if I go see my brothers…?"

"Go ahead, son."

_I'm not your son._

Sabo's skin crawls. He can't make himself reply. He nods and smiles, turning on his heel, and as soon as he's out in the corridor he's running. He runs on aching, still-bruised legs, down the corridor and far away from Newgate. His eyes are still stinging. He wonders why he's been crying so much recently, and can't come up with a good answer. Gasping for breath, he sprints through the halls of Wakeshead, running and running until finally, when it feels like he can't breathe, he stops in front of his door. The room where he, Ace and Luffy slept before.

Praying that they will somehow be in there, Sabo opens the door and stumbles in.

And they  _are_.

They both look up as Sabo opens the door, alarmed, and Ace is on his feet in a flash as he staggers in, panting for breath. His hands touch Sabo's shoulders, his face, and then the world goes blurry and Sabo realises that he's crying, sobbing like he did when he lost his arm except this time he's losing something far, far worse. He falls against Ace and feels his knees hit the floor - blood rushes to his head and his vision goes black for a moment. When it comes back, Ace is holding him tightly and that only makes him cry harder.

"Ace," he manages to croak, " _Ace_ , I can't do this, I don't want to do this- I don't want to leave you two-"

"You won't have to." Ace's arms tighten around his neck and Sabo wants to yell,  _please don't leave me_ , but he can't find the words. He sobs messily into Ace's neck and feels Luffy join them and the feeling of horrible, helpless loneliness amplifies even more. It hurts - more than he could have imagined, it hurts.

"You're going to hate me." Sabo sniffs, catching his breath for a moment, and then dissolves into tears again, "Y-You're going to  _hate_ me and you'll never fo-forgive me, and- and I'll just m-make you  _leave_  like I did with everybody else-"

"I don't care how many times I have to say it-" Ace grabs his face, turns it so he can look him the eye. "We're never leaving. We're not."

Sabo makes a miserable little noise of despair, pulling back, scrubbing madly at his eyes. "No. No, I can't do this, I can't just- it would be better if you two just forgot me-"

"Sabo…!" Luffy looks at him, eyes wide. "What happened? Something happened. Just tell us what you're going to do-"

"If I don't do this-" Sabo sniffs thickly, "If I don't do this, people are just going to keep on dying. And I can't just carry on letting people suffer, I  _can't_ , but if I do this, then Ace- Ace, you're going to think I betrayed you and you love your family and I could never get in the way of that- and I'm just  _stuck_ trying to choose between the world and you two-"

"You're doing that thing," Ace says, "Where you care too much about other people. Sabo, we're  _never_  going to leave you. So just do what you have to do, and we'll be here no matter what it is."

"Even if it means-" Sabo puts his face in his hands. "Even if it means your family being put in danger? Even if it means them being discovered?"

Ace freezes. "What?"

"Because that's what it means. Ace, if I do this, your family might be discovered and I just- I don't want to do that to you, I don't want to betray you, but I-"

Sabo breaks down. Luffy kneels beside him, putting his arms around his neck, and Ace doesn't move. For a while, Sabo thinks that he must be angry, but when he gets a look at his face... Ace looks almost resigned. Thoughtful.

After a moment, Ace says, "Yeah, I love them, but I love you, too."

Sabo goes still.

"And whatever it is you're planning… Do it." Ace looks steadily him in the eye. "If it's what you want to do, do it. I don't care. I'm never going to hate you, and neither is Luffy. Do it, and if you have to leave, if you have to go back to the city… we'll follow you."

"Yeah," Luffy agrees, without even a hint of hesitation. "We will. Okay?"

Sabo wipes his eyes. There's still self-loathing writhing in the pit of his stomach. "It's only a matter of time until I drive you both away."

Ace shakes his head. He leans over Luffy, presses his lips against Sabo's wet, tear-soaked cheek. It's not a tender, sweet thing - Ace puts enough force and meaning in the simple motion that Sabo's resolve almost breaks and he almost starts crying all over again. "Even if you tried, you couldn't, don't you get that?"

Sabo laughs wetly, feeling weak down to his bones. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

They end up staying like that, in a confused, teary pile on the floor. It's midday and the sky outside grows steadily darker - the oil-pastel blue is soon streaked with reds and pinks and oranges. They lie together, occasionally talking, Sabo wonders sleepily whether that's how the real sunset looks. Maybe someday, when he changes the world, he'll find out for himself.

"I'm tired of crying," he tells Ace, eyes burning as the sunset turns red. "I'm tired of being sad and scared and having to be held just so I don't feel so bad. I'm tired of all of this."

"Me too," Ace admits. "But it'll be past soon. After you do your stupid thing and you change the world and you make everything better again, maybe we won't have to be scared."

Sabo sighs, pushing a sleeping Luffy off him and onto Ace. He curls up tight, hugging his knees, feeling slightly overwhelmed. "If I thought there was another option, I would do it. In a heartbeat. You know I would."

"I know. But… as much as I love the Whitebeards, maybe I want change, too. And if this is going to get us change, I think it's an even trade."

"You're sure you're okay with this?"

"Of course I am."

Sabo sighs, cupping his stump. "To be honest, since I met you two, my world has changed more than I could have imagined anyway."

"I was thinking that the other day about you, too."

"If you had the option…" Sabo tilts his head to the side, still staring out of the window into the sunset. "Would you change things?"

"Not if you paid me."

Sabo smiles a little. "I'm...I'm home."

"What?"

"I think I might have finally found it, you know?" Sabo sighs. "Home. It's right here."

Ace chuckles softly. "Here? Wakeshead?"

"You ass." Sabo smacks him on the arm. "No.  _Here_ , you know? With you and Luffy. I think that's home."

"You're sure about that?"

"What do you think?"

Ace smiles a little, brushing his fingers through Luffy's hair. "I think… you're right. It feels like home, anyway. And… I think I might have found my reason too, y'know? The reason we talked about, after the war. I think my reason might be...here. Home."

"Good." Sabo stares into the sunset, and for a moment, he forgets about what he's planning to do once night falls. "Then I'll make sure you keep your reason, and I'll keep my home."

Ace nods, looking down at Luffy with a fond smile, and they lapse into silence as the night draws in. It's peaceful, like the calm before the storm, but the anguish is long gone.

Sabo is ready for this.


	38. New Day

The time creeps closer and closer. There's a clock on the wall and Sabo watches the minutes tick by, heart in his throat. By 2200, both Ace and Luffy are fast asleep in a feathery tangle of limbs, snoring loudly, buried in blankets. A part of Sabo wants to join them, wants to just forget about the world and his job for a while, but he knows he can't. Midnight ticks closer and closer and he begins to piece together his plan in his mind. Tonight is is the night. There's no backing down now.

There's little noise outside the room, expect for one incident. At around 2300, there are footsteps outside the door and somebody leans against it, likely pressing their ear to the door to listen out for movement. Sabo stays very still, keeping his breathing even, and Ace and Luffy's snores are loud and clear. Lying here in the dark, it reminds him starkly of the Hunt in a horrible, chilling way. That thought surprises him, but it's not wrong.

By the time the clock finally hits midnight, the corridors are quiet. With a sigh, Sabo extracts his hand from Ace's, loosens Luffy's grip around his waist. He stands up, making sure to stay very quiet, and for a moment, he stares down at the sleeping brothers. A small, traitorous part of him asks whether this will be the last time he sees them. Sabo forces the thought back, knowing that it's irrational and stupid and useless to be having at a time like this, and he tries to keep his mind on more important things - the job, the papers, the escape he has to make.

Just as he's about to turn away, somebody grabs his wrist. Sabo turns, surprised, and meets the eyes of Luffy, who is staring up at him in the dark, big brown eyes curious. "You're going?"

"Yeah. I gotta do my stupid thing, Lu."

"When will we see you again?"

"I'll be out of here in an hour. If I get caught… well, that's the end of it. But if I manage to get away from here…" Sabo hesitates. "Meet me in the city. On the ambassador's building, at dawn. Alright?"

"Why can't we do the stupid thing with you?"

"Ace doesn't want to - I know him. If he gets caught…" Sabo sighs. "Look. he spent years thinking his family hated him. If they really started to, I don't think he could handle it. Okay? You two need to stay here and I'll see you again, once I've started to change the world. Got it?"

"Okay…" Luffy stumbles to his feet in the dark, movements still sluggish with sleep, and hugs Sabo tight around the middle. "Stay safe. We love you, Sabo…"

Sabo squeezes him. "I know."

"A  _Star Wars_  reference?!" Luffy pulls back. "Asshole!"

"Star Wars?" Sabo asks. "I don't…?"

"Oh my god," Luffy says, "Oh my god, you haven't  _lived_. We seriously haven't shown you Star Wars?"

"What is it?"

"It's a bunch of films!" Luffy says, like it was obvious. "Though the prequels suck. But they're awesome! Me and Ace spent all our savings to see them when we first got the apartment, and he managed to steal copies of the DVDs a few years back. It's hard to watch them, but we used to break into houses in Sabaody when people weren't home and use the TVs. It was great!"

Sabo feels his heart soften. He abruptly feels a lot less worried about doing this. "Well, I promise that when we get back, you can show me all of them, okay?"

"There's, like, thirteen movies, y'know. They didn't stop makin' them, even after the infertility and all that."

"We'll manage it," Sabo laughs. "But for now, I gotta go, okay?"

"Okay…" Luffy sighs. "We'll see you soon, okay? I'll wake Ace up, we'll follow you."

"Alright." Sabo pulls away, knowing that if he puts it off any longer, he won't be able to make himself fo it. "'Night, Lu."

"Night, Sabo!"

Luffy stays standing as Sabo opens the door and slips out, and Sabo can feel his stare on his back even as he closes the door. For a moment, he's scared Luffy is going to come running after him. But he doesn't, and Sabo stands in the corridor for a moment, alone. It's almost too dark to see, but once his eyes have adjusted, he sets off towards the West side of the huge building at a steady pace.

It feels surreal to pace through the halls, shrouded in darkness. Nothing is moving. There's nobody awake. Sabo creeps through the deserted building on silent feet, watching as wall after pristine wall passes by, staying out of the way of moonlight that shines through the occasional bay windows situated alongside the corridor. He goes down a flight of stairs, wincing as they creak beneath his feet, and then carries on walking until he reaches a large, mahogany door set into the wall a little to the left of another staircase.

This is it. Whitebeard's office. In there is the one thing he needs, the one thing he wants more than anything at this one moment. Sabo tries the door, expecting it to be locked, but to his surprise, it opens without any resistance. Good. He can't afford to waste anymore time. Sabo steps inside - the room is dimly lit as moonlight floods through the large windows, framing Whitebeard's desk. The whole world is made up of greys, silvers and blacks. Sabo crosses the room and approaches the cabinet-

That, unfortunately, is still locked. Sabo curses and tries to make his mind up about what to do. He can see them through the glass front of the cabinet - the papers are right there, just past the thin glass, just out of reach. A small, indistinct plan begins to form in Sabo's mind and, acting on a whim, he cracks his knuckles and pulls his fist back.

Just as he's about to shatter the glass, a voice says, "I wouldn't do that if I was you."

Sabo flinches hard, heart racing, and whirls around. Leaning against the wall just beside the door is Whitebeard, half-obscured by shadow. He's staring right at Sabo, and his expression is angry and ugly and Sabo stumbles back, his body going cold.

"Sabo." Whitebeard steps out into the moonlight. "My son's friend. The one who stole from us so much, back when we first took you in. Are you used to taking what isn't yours, boy?"

Sabo steps back, still within reach of the cabinet. The huge window behind him throws his shadow onto the ground, and it looks tiny compared to Whitebeard's.

"I could ask you the same thing," Sabo says stiffly. "Why hide something like this away, when it could help the whole world? Why would you be so goddamn selfish, Newgate?"

"I should have known you were lying when you said you respected me, you foolish-"

"Yes, you should have known." Sabo is surprised by the strength in his own voice. "I used to respect you. Everybody did. You were known as the regulator who changed the region for the better, who fought for the people, who solved the housing problem. It was only when I met you that I realised that you're selfish and ignorant, and you refuse to see just how fucked up the world really is."

Whitebeard advances a step. "I'm protecting my family-"

"And I'm protecting mine. I'm just going to help change the world for the better at the same time." Sabo raises his fist again. "One more step. One more step, and I'll smash this glass."

"You won't be able to get out of this room."

Sabo curses under his breath. Whitebeard is right. Even if he does get the papers, the huge, powerful form of Edward Newgate is still blocking the only exit.

A crazy, terrifying idea begins to form in Sabo's mind.

"Won't I?" Sabo edges towards the cabinet. Then, he looks over Whitebeard's shoulder and yells, "Luffy,  _now!"_

It works; Whitebeard whirls around, disoriented, and Sabo takes his chance. He pulls his fist back and throws it forwards and his knuckles hit the glass and it shatters into thousands of pieces. Shards of glass bury themselves in his knuckles. He ignores the pain and grabs for the papers, scrunching them up in his hand and turning on his heel. Whitebeard turns back to face him, alarmed, and Sabo goes for it - with a flying leap, he hurls himself shoulder-first into the huge window behind the desk, and it smashes.

For a moment, Sabo hangs suspended in the air. Glass pierces his skin. Whitebeard's face breaks, seemingly in slow-motion, in alarm. Then, in a rush, gravity returns and Sabo is falling, He has the presence of mind to tuck his limbs in and wind rushes past him and he's terrified, lurching through the air madly with no sense of up or down. He hits the ground hard, rolling for a few moments, his whole body jarring and jamming up like a broken spring. The world goes dark.

When it returns, Sabo finds himself lying on the ground, cheek pressed against grass. Everything aches. His ankle is the worst, burning like fire, and the pain is close to unbearable and he can only just keep from yelling out. His whole body feels battered and bruised, but-

The papers are in his hand.

Sabo staggers to his feet, swaying, vision blurry. Concussion. His knuckles are full of glass and blood and he can feel pieces of it pressed into his skin, dripping hot, sticky liquid. His whole left side aches with a dull pain, like he's been punched by a huge, iron fist. He can feel blood dripping from his nose and from a cut at his hairline.

But he doesn't have time to stop and evaluate his injuries. Lights are flickering on in Wakeshead hall. Up in the office, which is two storeys above, somebody turns on a lamp. People are waking up, and soon they'll be out here, ready to take back what is theirs. Terror seeps through Sabo's muddled mind and he turns, forcing himself to start running. He knows vaguely where the entrance to the dome is. He needs to get there, now. There'll be no chance to steal the jeep now.

 _Fuck_.

Every step is agony - every movement makes Sabo's eyes burn. He tucks the papers into his sweatshirt and prays that they aren't ripped. Then he starts sprinting, forcing his worn body into action. Every other step makes his ankle buckle, but he doesn't stop. The lights of Wakeshead begin to fade behind him as he runs through the long grass, towards the edge of the dome. There are voices, yelling faintly behind him, and Sabo knows they must be looking for him.  _Move. Go. You can't let them catch you_.

He looks behind him for a moment. The light in the bedroom Ace and Luffy are in is on.

Sabo forces himself to go on. The edge of the dome is close, now, but soon people will start to look for him here. He has to be out of this goddamn place by then. He trails blood through the grass and tries to keep his mind off the pain, picking a piece of glass out of the fleshy part of the bottom of his hand with his teeth. He tastes blood on it and spits it out, and the cut it made bleeds freely, gushing trickles of blood down his arm to the cuff of his hoodie.

Some part of Sabo realises, vaguely, that once he gets out of the dome, he'll be out in the wilds. In the place where Ace was once captured and tortured by slave traders. In the hellish place where the bodies of the Hunt's dead are dumped and burned, and where the people of the city will not dare to go.

But if he has to cross through the wilds… Sabo clenches his jaw.

Somehow, he'll do it.

* * *

Ace shoves his way through the crowd at the entrance of the office. It feels like every single member of Wakeshead Hall is gathered here, clustered together, and Ace has no care for manners as he and Luffy push through the crowds and into the office. For a moment, Ace can't make sense of what has happened - there are too many people and it's too loud and he can't concentrate.

Suddenly, Luffy grabs his arm. "Look! There!"

Ace gapes. The huge window behind Oyaji's desk is shattered and glass litters the floor - some of it, Ace notes with dismay, looks bloodied. The glass of the cabinet beside his desk is also broken, and Oyaji himself is standing by the window, staring out into the darkness.

"Oyaji!" Ace grabs Luffy and they push to the front of the milling crowd. "Oyaji, what happened?!"

Silence falls as everybody waits for the old man's answer. Slowly, he turns away from the window, looking grave. "Marco. Send some of your brothers out to search the grounds. I want every inch inside this dome searched, do you understand?"

"Yes, Oyaji." Marco turns away and starts throwing commands, but Ace doesn't pay any attention.

"Oyaji, what-"

"What happened to Sabo?" Luffy steps forwards, fists clenched like he's facing an enemy. "What did you do to him?!"

Oyaji stares down at Luffy impassively for a moment. "Your brother has just stolen something very, very important to us. I suspected he would. Now, our concern lies with trying to get back what is ours."

"Where's Sabo?" Ace steps forwards. "Oyaji,  _please_."

"He jumped." Oyaji points to the window, still looking grave.

Ace's heart feels like it stops beating. "What…?!"

"I wouldn't have been surprised if he had died. But he's gotten up, and now he's running around with our-"

"Who cares about whatever he stole?!" Ace's voice breaks. "Oyaji, he could be  _dying_ -"

"Don't treat me like the cruel one, Ace." Whitebeard's voice is hard. "I'm trying to keep my people alive."

"I thought you said he was one of yours, too?" Luffy asks. His voice sounds very small.

"We won't leave him to die." Whitebeard turns back towards the bloodied window. "If we find him, we will offer him medical attention. But he has put our family in danger. He isn't welcome here anymore, Ace."

"I…" Ace can't stop staring at the blood on the shards of glass covering the floor. "I just…"

A hand lands on his shoulder. Marco. "Ace, yoi, you're shaking. You should go back to your room-"

" _No!_ "

Ace's voice comes out so loud that people stop and stare. He feels his chest rising and falling rapidly, feels the raggedness of every breath as they force their way out of his throat in quick succession. His brain feels fuzzy.

"N-No," he manages to choke out. "No. Marco, get the jeep."

"What?"

"I said  _get the jeep_ , or I'm jumping out of that window and following him."

Marco inhales sharply. "...Alright, yoi. Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Ace meets Whitebeard's eyes. "I've got faith in Sabo. He'll get out of here. And we're going to be there for him when he does."

Whitebeard sighs. "Ace…"

"No, shut up!" Ace turns away. "If my brother wants to make the world better and he has to jump out of a two storey window to do it, and he has to escape from people who are hunting him like an animal, you're doing something wrong. This has gone too far. If you're not going to keep him safe, then we're going to stay in the city, got it?"

"Alright." Whitebeard looks pained, but firm. "But you have to understand, Ace - we aren't a revolutionary group. We have to keep our own safe-"

"I don't give a fuck." Ace turns on his heel, grabbing Luffy's wrist. "I don't care. Oyaji, I love you. And I know you aren't bad people. But we can't do this. Alright? We can't."

With that, he strides out of the room, Luffy at his side. Ace can feel his pulse pounding in his ears, can feel his heart soaring, and he's simultaneously angry and utterly terrified. It's the worst feeling he can possibly imagine. Sabo is out there, alone and injured and being hunted, and Ace knows, deep inside of himself, that there's nothing they can do to help him. They have to get to the city, get to the ambassador's building. And then they have to wait.

At his side, Luffy's eyes are shadowed. "What're we gonna do?"

"It's been a while since he must have jumped." Ace doesn't look at him. "If he's able to walk, he should be out in the wilds by now. We'll get Marco to drive us back to the city - hopefully Sabo will take the main road, hopefully we'll see him on our way and be able to pick him up."

"And if we don't?"

"Then we go to the ambassador's builing, and we wait."

"But-"

"Luffy." Ace's voice comes out steely and hard. "I'm worried too. I am. If I lost Sabo… I couldn't handle it. But we can't risk getting lost out in the wilds."

"Why?"

They're on the staircase now, leading down to the entrance hall, and Ace whirls around and turns on Luffy. " _Because I can't lose you too!_  Okay? I can't. I can't lose you as well."

Luffy stops. "Ace…"

"I'm worried too. More worried than I've ever been." Ace raises his chin. "But Sabo is your older brother, isn't he? Give him some credit. He'll… he'll make it through."

Luffy grabs Ace's arm tightly, and they walk down the rest of the stairs together. "Okay…"

At the bottom of the stairs, Marco stands, looking at them. "Are we good to go, yoi?"

"Yes. Let's get out of here, quickly," Ace instructs. "And we have to drive slowly going through the wilds, okay? In case we see Sabo."

"Alright," Marco agrees. "I can do that. But are you sure you want to…?"

"Yes," Ace says resolutely. "Yes, absolutely. Now come on."

With a weary sigh and a nod, Marco leads them through the entrance hall, past members of Ace's family who are cramped in here, and who part as Ace, Luffy and Marco make their way through. Ace feels dozens of eyes on his back. He doesn't speak, doesn't even turn to look at them. They're the reason Sabo has had to go through even more shit, even though he's the person who least deserves it in the whole world. They're the reason he had to jump. They're the reason he could be dying right now.

Ace leaves without settling matters. There's no bittersweetness, only anger. There's no goodbye. He leaves with resentment curling in his chest - towards this family, towards the world, and most of all... towards himself.

_Stay alive, Sabo. Please._

* * *

Sabo's whole body feels like it's been put through a blender. There are different types of pain a person can feel - deep aches, sharp stings, small twinges, the grating, burning agony of broken bones. He feels like they're all attacking him at once, eating away at his consciousness, tearing him away from reality. The last time he felt pain like this, Blackbeard had just finished with him - the time before would have been after the Bluetown fire. It's the kind of once-in-a-lifetime agony that gives people nightmares just with its intensity.

He staggers past the city limits, picks his way over the barbed wire. It tears at his clothes and skin and he winces, but carries on regardless. A piece of the stuff catches on his shoe, digging into his ankle, and he reaches down to free himself from it. By the time he's over and past the barbed wire, the pain has gotten so bad that the corners of his vision are blurry and the whole world seems small and surreal, like he's seeing it through a straw.

Sabo staggers on. Only a little further. He keeps his eyes on the ground, steps through puddles of rainwater and grime and occasional blood. The ground of this city itself feels infected. Every step that brings him further into this hellhole only strengthens his resolve; he's going to do this, even if it kills him. The papers feel hot against his skin.

Uptown is deserted. Sabo sees the tall, deserted building that marks the revolutionary HQ, and something tense inside of him relaxes. There it is. His goal. He tries to break into a run, to finish this last leg of the journey with a bang… but he can't. His body point-blank refuses. Sabo curses under his breath and limps the rest of the way to the building, painfully slowly, rounding it to get to the back door.

He's finally here.

The journey through the wilds was hell. There's no other way of describing it. Luckily there was only one slaver and Sabo decked him, hard enough that he hit a tree so hard that he didn't get up again and Sabo thinks, somewhere in the back of his mind, that he might have killed him. The wilds really are as bad as people say - the trees are gnarled and twisted and rotten with poison, and the grass is black and it's horribly silent. There are no birds, for they have all flown away or died. It's a place Sabo never wants to return to again. He stayed off the main road, mostly for fear of being seen by any other slavers, but it meant that the journey was slower than he would have liked.

He checks his watch. Surprisingly, it's 0400 already. The hours pass quickly when you're running for your life. With a sigh, Sabo reaches up and knocks on the door, wincing as the impact forces a few shards of glass further into his skin. He'd forgotten about them. When did they get there again…?

The door is open - there's light on his face. Somebody says his name. Sabo looks up and through hazy vision he sees Hack, one of the men he met when he was here before. The man looks somewhere between concerned and horrified, and Sabo figures that he must look pretty bad.

There's a hand on his shoulder - more people. Struggling to stay on his feet, Sabo reaches into his sweatshirt and presses the papers into Dragon's hands. When did Dragon get here? Sabo is lead inside, into the light, and somebody pushes him into a chair. There are voices and movement all around him. Sabo closes his eyes for a moment and when he opens them again, he's lying down, head propped up on a pillow. The world fades in and out like an old film.

Dragon is there. His eyes are sad. "What did they do to you, son?"

Sabo hopes he did well. Hopes he got the right thing. Hopes the papers can make a difference. There are words spilling off his lips without his permission and Dragon's face gets sadder, grimmer, and then the blackness comes back again.

The universe comes and goes for a while. Sabo drifts on a wide ocean. There are moments of lucidity - he hears somebody yell about a concussion and, close to his ear, somebody else says  _shit, get that glass out of his hand right now_. There are moments of faint, indistinct, nonsensical dreams - Ace's grey eyes keep appearing in his mind, and his voice as he says,  _it's not like a noble would know anything about caring about people_. Luffy is there too, and there's blood bubbling over his lips and he looks pale enough to be dead and he says, in Law's voice,  _I didn't mean to do this, I didn't, I swear_ -

The world flickers back into view and Sabo is still lying down, on some kind of gurney. Somebody is shining a light into his eyes and he tells them to stop. He feels swear words drip from his swollen lips easily, without his permission.

Somewhere to his left, Dragon chuckles and says, "I think he'll be alright."

"Can you hear me?" Somebody - a doctor - waves a hand in front of Sabo's face. "I think he's waking up."

"What time is it?"

"What?" The doctor sounds confused.

"I said-" Sabo forces his eyes open, and shoves the doctor away from him with as much strength as he can muster - which, realistically, isn't much. "I said, what time is it?"

"Lie back down, young man, you-"

"0700. You've been asleep for nearly two and a half hours," Dragon answers. "Why?"

"It is past dawn?" Sabo blinks rapidly, trying to fix his stupid wonky vision. His mouth feels like it's full of cotton wool. "I need to go, I need to go right now."

Dragon's face swims into view. "Why, son?"

When Dragon calls him son, a little part of Sabo feels warm. He doesn't mind it. Dragon is the kind of man he wouldn't mind as a father, he thinks fuzzily, before realising that he still hasn't answered.

"Uh- I've got to be somewhere." Sabo realises how stupid that sounds. "I promised somebody I would meet with them. I have to go, I have to-"

"Stay calm, kid." Dragon moves away for a moment, then comes back. "Is it urgent?"

"Yes. Very."

"Alright. Then you can go-"

"What do you mean?!" the doctor blusters. "He's nowhere near healed, Dragon, he needs to lie down-"

"Ah, let the kid go." Dragon grins. It makes him look like a shark. "He's tough. Ain't that right?"

Sabo's brain feels too fried to think of an answer. He pushes himself to his feet and promptly falls, and Dragon steadies him with rough, firm hands. Sabo is painfully aware that every moment is a moment closer to dawn. His ankle screams with pain as he tries to step on it and he realises that it's in a cast with a metal sole. Fuck. He must have broken his ankle, or foot, or both.

Somebody shoves something into his hands - two crutches, used and worn but functional. "If you don't want to break even more bones," the doctor says sternly, "Use those. And come back here as soon as you've done what you need to do, do you understand-"

Sabo doesn't let him finish his sentence. "I can't use these. Only one hand."

The doctor sighs. "Then at least use one-"

But Sabo ignores him. Dropping the crutches, he glances around - they're in a sectioned-off little area of the bottom floor. Across the hall is the entrance he came in last night. There's a bloody handprint on the doorframe and he flinches, knowing it must be his.

Sabo turns to Dragon. "I hope the instructions helped?"

"They did. More than you know. And we would like to spend more time with us in the future, if you want to. You're a bright kid, and full of fire. We need somebody like you, Sabo…?"

"Sabo Portgas," Sabo finishes. "You're the first person to ask what I want to be called."

"Well, that's freedom." Dragon grins again - that same grin that makes him look like a savage animal - and Sabo feels like he could get used to it. "We'll see you soon, kid."

"You will," Sabo agrees. Then, "Thank you, doc."

The doctor turns away, scowling. "You were beat to hell. If you end up collapsing out there, on your head be it."

"Got it." Sabo smiles and the movement hurts his bruised face. "I won't go jumping off any buildings again."

"You'd better not," the doctor threatens, before sighing and lighting a cigarette. "We'll see you soon, kid. Take care of yourself out there."

Sabo is already moving, limping on a foot that feels like it is about to burst into flames. He doesn't look back. Leaving Dragon and the doctor behind, he staggers out into the main area, passing different people standing around on his way to get to the door. A few of them stop and stare, wide-eyed, but most of them smile and wave. Sabo waves back with a heavily bandaged hand. The revolutionaries… he feels like he could get along with them.

Outside, the sky is turning dark grey as streaks of light begin to fill the ashy dawn. Sabo moves quickly. Ace and Luffy must be getting worried by now. It's sunday and uptown is quiet, because most people start later today. The streets feel deserted, like this is a ghost town. Sabo finds that he's moving at a snail's pace, too still and too stiff, and the cast on his foot gives him and awkward gait that reminds Sabo of a mechanical toy soldier.

He meets nobody on the way to the ambassadors building - and thank god, because he must look like shit. When Sabo finally gets to the base of the huge, hulking structure, the glass pane they smashed last time is broken. Sabo winces and steps over the shards of glass that litter the ground, entering the huge entrance hall, feeling dwarfed by the high ceiling and beautiful architecture. It feels less ethereal in the daytime, without the green light shining on the marble.

The light grey glow of dawn filters through high windows surrounding the hall, hitting the white walls and floor to create a soft, ambient light. It's warm. This place is obviously created to build up heat but not become sweltering - it's the perfect temperature. White paper birds hang from the ceiling high above, spinning slowly like a strange chandelier. Almost in a trance, Sabo starts up the unmoving elevator, his every footstep echoing through the wide space. He feels like he's almost left his body behind in a wide, beautiful place like this.

Up the levels he wanders, all urgency abruptly gone. The floors pass and with every one, it gets lighter. Sabo feels almost lightheaded. By the time he reaches the top floor, and the stairs to the roof, his body is aching fiercely but he feels re-energised, like this place has breathed new life into his bones. The light of dawn is bright on his skin. Taking a deep breath, he starts up the stairs, wincing as his broken foot takes his weight and the metal splint taps on the ground. He can only imagine how bruised his face is after the impact with the ground, but he can hardly back down now.

Sabo emerges out onto the roof almost silently. And there they are. Ace and Luffy are sitting, side-by-side on the edge of the roof, feet dangling down over the ground below. Ace has an arm wrapped around Luffy and they're huddled together closely, presumably to keep out the chill. They don't notice Sabo for a minute or so and he stands there looking at them for a while. A strange, strong pride wells up in his chest. These are the people who love him. The people who care about him more than anything. They're  _his people_.

Sabo takes a step forwards. The metal splint taps against the ground and Ace looks over his shoulder, jaw dropping as he sees Sabo. Luffy follows the motion, shock and horror in equal measure taking over his face as he sees Sabo standing there in all his beat-up glory. But before they can stand, before they can even open their mouths, Sabo stumbles over to them and sits on Ace's other side, wincing as the movement jars his injuries.

"Jesus  _Christ_ , Sab."

Sabo smiles, even though the movement makes his face ache. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you two."

"Did you do it?" Luffy asks, "Your stupid thing?"

Sabo nods, staring out into the grey dawn. "Yeah. It's done. And…"

"If you say it," Ace warns in a choked-up voice, staring at Sabo, "I'm going to punch you. Don't say it. Don't you dare. Don't say you're fine, not now."

"Is it really that bad?"

Ace laughs, and it sounds like a sob. "Your bruises have bruises. Fucking hell, Sabo."

"Yeah, I… overdid it this time, huh?"

"That's an understatement." Ace seems almost cautious to touch him, as though Sabo might break.

Sabo, on the other hand, doesn't have reservations in throwing his arms around Ace's neck and grinning into his shoulder, nearly toppling all three of them back onto the concrete. Luffy joins the hug, squeezing the life out of Ace as he grips Sabo's arms, and Ace grasps Sabo back tightly until he has to stop them, telling the pair to let go before they suffocate him.

As Sabo pulls back, he plants a kiss on Ace's lips that makes the other teen turn bright red, cheeks flushing dark. Sabo grins at him and says, "You look like you're about to explode."

"I hate you. Assface."

"I love you, too." Sabo sobers. "I… was worried you weren't going to be here. And yes, before you say it, I know that's stupid. Sue me, okay? I was worried. I'm just glad to see you."

"We're glad to see you!" Luffy gets up and moves to sit on Sabo's other side, nudging at his uninjured foot with his toe. "You should have seen if after you left."

"What happened?"

"They said they were going to hunt for you and that you weren't welcome here anymore, and then Ace got  _super_ angry and made Marco take us back in the jeep. And we drove really slow, y'know, hoping we would see you-"

"Sorry, Lu. I stayed off the main track." Sabo doesn't meet Ace's eyes. "Ran into a slaver at the beginning. I didn't want to see anymore."

"You what?" Ace asks sharply.

"It wasn't a big deal!" Sabo sighs. "I punched him. Hard. Adrenaline, I guess. And his head hit a tree and there was a lot of blood, I- it was a hard hit. And I don't know if he would have made it after a hit like that, or if anybody would have found him."

"And do you regret doing it?"

"No," Sabo admits. "One less slaver in the world is a good thing. It's just… I'm just tired. Tired and… it's just strange. Y'know?"

"I know what you mean." Ace rests his head on Sabo's shoulder. It hurts a little, but not too badly, so Sabo doesn't say anything. "It passes."

"Does it?"

"It did for me."

Luffy bounces his heels against the concrete wall. "What now?"

"Well." Sabo smiles a little. "I've got myself a new job, I think. The revolutionary leader… I like him. A lot. And I get the feeling he likes me too. It's… what I want to do. Changing the world, I mean. And they can help me do it."

"I might check them out too," Ace admits. "Get myself a new job - god knows I'm done with gangs, seriously - get a steady income. If this guy is so great… does he accept Fae?"

"I mean, I've only seen him without a cloak once, and I'm pretty sure… I'm pretty sure he  _is_ Fae," Sabo admits. "He's an unusual guy. Says I remind him of himself when he was younger. I'll take you to see him, when I can."

"After you've slept for three days," Ace says sternly. "Seriously. You look like shit. Shit that got scraped off a wall and run over by a cargo truck."

"Okay, okay, I got the message."

Luffy stares out over the city. "I dunno what I wanna do. I mean, I want to stay with my gang, at least. I can't leave them. But maybe… maybe we can try something new. Something to help you guys!"

"You're sure about that?" Sabo chuckles. "I didn't think politics was your thing."

"It's not," Luffy pouts. "But I can handle it. We said we would change the city, right? I wanna help do that."

"If you're sure." Sabo wraps an arm around him and squeezes. "Thanks, Luffy. And Ace - you too. Thank you."

Ace laughs a little. "You don't need to thank us. We're your family, right? It's what we do. We have to stick together, because otherwise we would just be alone."

"What about Whitebeard?" Sabo asks cautiously. Ace goes still. "If you two… still want to go back, I don't-"

"Stop," Ace says. "Stop."

"Uh…?"

"We're not going back." Ace sighs. "I love them, I do, but… I don't agree with them. At all. And the second one of them starts to threaten you, or Luffy, like they did tonight… I'm done. I'm not going to carry on being theirs when they're the reason you're hurt so bad. Not unless they change."

"Yeah," Luffy says. "And, like, Sabo… we care. We care. Is that hard to understand?"

"Yeah, it is," Sabo admits with a small laugh. "It really is. I'm used to people not caring, or stopping when they've decided they don't want to anymore. It's just hard to process. Really hard."

"I know the feeling." Ace stares out over the city. "I do."

They're silent for a while. Sabo keeps his arm wrapped around Luffy, and Ace stays pressed against his shoulder. The sky gets lighter and the city wakes up, and they watch it as one. Hope is still building in Sabo's chest, somehow. He feels born anew. It's a new day.

Eventually, Sabo asks quietly, "We're changing the world, right? That's the plan? Starting today. It's a new day. A new chance to make things better."

Ace nods, staring down at the grey district. "Yeah. Yeah, we will. We will change things."

"Definitely!" Luffy pumps his fist. "It's gonna be awesome. I know it."

Sabo smiles, and for once, he really believes them. He seriously thinks - no, he  _knows_  - that they're going to make a difference. The world is a cruel place, cold and unforgiving and it's hurt him; fuck, it's hurt them all. But maybe the future can be better. Maybe there's a change that means that somewhere down the line, life can be good for everybody. Maybe there's a way to make the world a better place for Luffy and Ace. Sabo is determined, more than he's ever been to do anything, to do it.

But… for this moment, he's content to sit here with the people he loves and watch the dawn of a new day.


	39. Star Wars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay ive got a lot to say here oh my go d  
> You guys! You people reading this and commenting on this! Yes you! You're incredible! You're the reason i've done this and thank you so much to all of you for your amazing support, you blow me away with your love and feedback and each of you means so much to me! Aaaaa im getting all mushy now but the point is, you're all amazing and I can't thank you enough.  
> Next! Thanks to a few specific people - thanks so much to t, guoda, cole, vin, ru and all the lovely lovely people who have done so much to keep me going with this! (including making art, fic, moodboards etc for this, each of which i scream at, seriously, im still in shock you're all so talented what the hell!)  
> And! Finally thanks so much to my two amazing friends zoe and barbara! You two are the best, you've stuck with me through the entire thing and i love you both so so so much, thank you so much, hopefully we can do more in the future! Ily both!  
> Alright! Let's finish this thing!

_Three years later_.

Night falls quickly. Winter this year has been colder than usual, chilly and crisp, and the grey district is coated in layers upon layers of shimmering silver frost that covers the windows and the streets, even freezing the water running down through the gutters. It is quiet and still, and nothing moves. New year's eve in the poorest neighbourhood in the city is far from festive, and it always has been.

Not much has changed in three years - or, at least, not much has changed on the surface. The city is still dirty and poor, and the people are even moreso. It would seem, at first, that things have stayed exactly the same as they were three years ago.

They haven't.

There's a poster pasted to the wall just down the street from Block 04. It's surprisingly eyecatching, even when sodden with rain and grime and a million other unpleasant things. Emblazoned with the bright, blue words 'STAND UP!', it pictures a man in his early twenties, fist raised high in a stance like a historical revolutionary. His blonde hair partially obscures the burn scar on his face. Shadow falls across his downcast face, and he's glaring out of the poster with a determined grimace, like a soldier going into battle. Across the bottom of the poster is printed, in large letters, 'VOTE DRAGON'.

Further along the street, there's another poster that looks similar, yet simultaneously very different. This one displays a picture of a heavyset young man with an upturned nose and hair the colour of dirty straw. His dull brown eyes look blank and blind on the paper. Below his wide chest are the bright red words, 'VOTE OUTLOOK'. The ambassador for the Outlook party grins condescendingly down into the street, his wingless shoulders adorned with rich, red fabrics that make the ambassador for Dragon look practically scruffy.

This time rolls around every five years or so, and it always brings with it the same tension, the same anticipation that clogs up the air. The election of the new regulator and his party is days away now and, as it does every election, it has come down to two major competitors, neck-and-neck, pushing for the vote of the people. The Outlook party, and the Chartists.

Blaring from a soggy radio in a window down the street, an interviewer's voice asks, "Mr. Portgas, may I ask what the reasoning for your party's name is? It's pretty unusual - not many of us can figure it out."

A small laugh - young, male, pleasant. "Please, it's just Sabo. And it's actually quite the story. Dragon and I are of the opinion that we aren't too interested in the… glory that comes with being regulator. We are motivated by the prospect of social change, political upheaval. Anybody with any historical knowledge may be aware of the Chartist riots? 19th Century?"

"I can't say I am."

"Well, the Chartist riots were a huge political movement that advocated for increased voting rights for the lower classes, and marginalised groups," Sabo explains. "Seeing as Dragon and I are both striving for the betterment of the lives of these very people… we found it appropriate."

"I see." The interviewer pauses for a moment. "And how do you and candidate regulator Dragon intend to achieve this?"

"Closing the class gap - a destabilisation of the economy. Fae and humans alike are exploited by our labour system currently, and this needs to change if we want to keep people alive, or the situation is only going to grow more dire. If we raise wages and improve workers rights, we can ameliorate the living conditions of the most impoverished of our city. I have personally been victim to poverty, and… nobody should live in a system which forces that life onto them. We need to help people."

"That sounds like socialist talk."

"It's 'keeping people alive' talk," Sabo replies drily.

"...Let's move on," the interviewer says after a moment, obviously uncomfortable. "There have been certain rumours - not that I give them any stock, of course - about your… family."

"My family?" Controlled, polite innocence. "I live with my partner and younger brother, if that's who you mean."

"One Stelly Outlook made a comment-"

"Stelly Outlook?" A small laugh. "You must remember that my rival vice-regulator makes comments on… many things."

This, at least, gets a small laugh out of the interviewer. "Indeed. But many are curious, and I must ask - are you related to Master Outlook in any way? He and his son have implied in the past-"

"If I was related to my contenders, I would most definitely have released this information to the public." Sabo's voice is a little colder. "I personally do not offer the often bizarre opinions of my opposition much respect. In the end, whatever the Outlook party have been… commenting on, I turn the other cheek. I would recommend that others do the same."

"Let's talk about your campaign," the interviewer says quickly, obviously realising that they have strayed into dangerous waters. "You intend to take post as Dragon's vice regulator?"

"Yes. It's common knowledge that the regulator of the 7th region controls three cities, and i will stay based here, as this city needs by far the most work. It will be quite the job, but we are eager to get started."

"You're quite young for somebody aiming for such power."

"Yes," Sabo admits modestly. "But my party and I don't particularly care, as they consider me more than competent. And we would be hypocrites if we only now began judging people on how they're made, after all."

"Well said," the interviewer says, without much feeling. "Alright, so there is another thing I want to clear up before we end the show for tonight. Two years ago, you and your party released the instructions for the newest revolutionary technology out there - the electriglass. This is what gained your growing popularity, correct?"

"Yep." Sabo laughs a little. "Controversy often does that."

"And now the division is clear. The Outlook party has stated publicly that they plan to construct electriglass only around two districts - the High district and uptown - if they are put in the seat of power. This has gained them a lot of popularity in… certain circles. What are your party's plans if you're elected? What do you plan to do with this new technology?"

"Well, I think we've made our views quite clear - we plan to help people. It would be constructed all the way around the city."

"Including the Stacks?"

"Yes, of course. And entry and exit would be both free of charge and open without regulation. We intend to offer protection for the people, not alienate them and divide our already turbulent society even more. The electriglass is able to conceal all that it holds and protect from radiation and explosives, which would largely protect from nuclear threats, but only if it surrounded the whole city." Sabo laughs. "If I was quite honest, I would call the plan of the Outlook party almost foolish. They are hardly gaining the favour of the people."

There's a short pause, and then the interviewer says, obviously realising that they are breaching risky territory, "Alright, folks, that's all the time we have for tonight. Mr Portgas - it's been great having you on."

"It's been my pleasure."

"Now, for a short news update…"

The radio drones on, moving onto other topics. Across the city, on the more wealthy side of the Sabaody district, a blonde man says his goodbyes to the crew of Region7News and pulls his coat tighter around himself, stepping out into the icy night. The ground is cold and cracked beneath his boots and his stride is purposeful but relaxed. He has the air of somebody heading home after a long day of work. As he walks, he pulls his shoulder-length blonde hair back into a low tie.

The blonde man passes streetlamps that light up the way and make the streets glimmer coppery-gold. The Sabaody district is nice this time of year. He strides past posters plastered along the streets, not paying much attention to the large, bold 'STAND UP's and 'VOTE OUTLOOK's. He's seen them enough already to have memorised them. For now, he is relaxed, secure with the knowledge that he is approaching his home. His footsteps ring in the empty streets and he whistles a little, hands in his pockets, as he strolls through the darkened alleyways.

On the border between the grey district and Sabaody, sandwiched between the boarded-up shops, is a small, terraced house. It's most definitely worse for wear, with scratched up walls and an overgrown garden, but the blonde man breaks into a smile when he sees it and speeds up, almost slipping on the ice in his haste to get to it.

The gate to the tiny front garden is creaky and coated in grime, and the man pushes it gently so as not to make too much noise. He picks his way down the weed-riddled front path to the front door, and warm light shines on his face through the frosted little window set into the wood. He pauses for a moment, smiling, wondering who is home right now. Ace, most likely - Dragon usually doesn't keep him late when Sabo is due home, too. Luffy is probably in there too, as he can't remember him mentioning having anywhere to be.

Still smiling, the blonde man unlocks the front door and steps inside. He's hit immediately with a rush of warmth that soothes him to the bone, and there's a rich, sweet smell like spices emanating from deeper into the house. Sabo shuts the door behind him, the last traces of tension melting from his frame, and as he hangs up his coat he calls, "I'm home!"

"Sabo!" Ace stumbles into view in the kitchen doorway. There's dirt on his nose and he's wearing an apron that says, ' _I can't cook'_ . He looks similar to how he did three years ago - though he's noticeably less grimey, less slumped, and he's put on enough weight that he could no longer be called underweight by any means. Even Sabo still looks a little gaunt, but Ace seems to be at the pinnacle of good health, with broader shoulders and wings that look more vibrant, more colourful than they've ever been before. He seems completely, genuinely _happy_.

Sabo meets him in the middle of the corridor and when Ace tries to kiss him, he noses at his cheek playfully and their foreheads bump against each other. "You're wearing the apron again."

"This?" Ace tugs on the worn fabric. "This, my ignorant companion, is a priceless Portgas family heirloom."

"Oh, my, I am sorry." Sabo laughs, moving into the kitchen with Ace behind him.

"You damn well should be. I'm afraid your impertinence calls for one thing only."

Sabo leans back against the kitchen counter, beside where a pot of rice is boiling on the hob. "The guillotine?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Ace grabs a spatula from the sideboard and points it at Sabo threateningly. "Now, surrender."

"Never."

"Then there's only one thing for it. We duel!"

Sabo dodges out of the way of Ace's jab, laughing, and grabs a cloth from the sideboard to swat at him with. It catches Ace on the arm and his staggers, clutching the area and howling like a wounded animal. Sabo puts his hands on his hips, grinning victoriously.

"Ah! Heathen, you wound me!"

As Ace dramatically falls back against the counter, Sabo rolls his eyes. "You're a big baby."

"But you love me."

"Yeah," Sabo admits affectionately. "I guess I do."

They meet in the middle of the kitchen, duel forgotten, and just as Sabo snakes an arm around Ace's waist and leans in, eyes fluttering closed-

A timer goes off on the table. Ace curses, pulling away. "Crap. That'll be the chicken."

"Is there some kind of occasion?" Sabo asks, watching Ace scramble to get a tray of grilled chicken out of the oven. "I mean, I know eating real food isn't so unusual for us anymore, but this is a bit much, right?"

"It's new year's eve," Ace says, as though it was obvious.

"And that's important because…?"

"I wanted to celebrate!" Ace defends, poking at a piece of chicken with fork. "Sue me. And plus, it's been a wild year. I know the next one is gonna be even better!"

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Sabo shrugs. "Alright, I believe you. Anyway, where's Luffy? If we're celebrating, you know he has to be here."

"Of course I do." Ace glances around. "I dunno. He was around here somewhere a while ago, bugging me about food. He's still in the house, I think."

As another timer goes off and Ace rushes to take a saucepan of curry sauce off the heat, Sabo wanders into their little living room. It feels like home, even if it's only been a year since they moved into this place. There's a little dragon statue on the mantelpiece, made of scrap metal - Luffy's birthday present for Sabo earlier in the year. Beside it sits a photo, in a wooden frame, of the three of them. Sabo remembers Nojiko taking it. They're all grinning at the camera, and Sabo looks incredibly happy. They look like a family. Sabo smiles at the picture fondly and moves along.

([this gorgeous artist](https://ohshanksno.tumblr.com/))

Further along the mantlepiece are a few other knicknacks - a scrap of black fabric that was once Zoro's bandana, an empty packet of water purification tablets, a radiation poisoning protocol pamphlet. One of Usopp's old slingshots is up there two, and a tiny little potted cactus that Luffy lovingly refers to as one of the family. It's mismatched and hardly aesthetically pleasing but the mantlepiece is just how Sabo would want it. It means home.

The two couches in the room are well used too, and eclectically mismatched. One is furnished with a pillow from the den that they managed to save all that time ago. It still smells a little like smoke. The other is covered with a ragged blanket that Luffy tried and failed to knit when they first got this place. It's a mismatch of a dozen different types of yarn and it's full of holes and it bunches up in places, not sitting properly - but it, like the apron, is a Portgas family heirloom, so of course it is one of the most precious things in the house.

([this beautiful artist](https://knotgrass-koala.tumblr.com/))

There's another precious member of the household on the couch, too, curled up under the mismatched blanket - Luffy, fast asleep and snoring obnoxiously. Sabo stifles a laugh and takes out his phone, snapping a picture for blackmail purposes. The radio is on on next to Luffy, sitting on a little table, and Sabo realises that Luffy must have been listening to his interview. The realisation makes him smile. God knows Luffy is about as uninterested in politics as a person can be. The fact that he's trying to take an interest means a lot to Sabo.

Ace pokes his head around the door and, catching sight of Luffy, grins softly and steps inside.

"Got a picture," Sabo murmurs.

"You read my mind." Ace glances at the radio. "He was listening to your interview."

"Yeah, I noticed. How d'ya reckon it went?"

"Well, it sounds… weird," Ace confesses. "Like it's not actually you talking, you know?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, like… you use big words," Ace settles on. "And you act real professional and honestly it's kinda creepy, like you're a different person when you're not here."

"I know what you mean. I mean, I _feel_ like a different person when I'm not here," Sabo sighs. "But I've got to keep up appearances, I guess."

"Are you happy?"

"I guess I am." Sabo grabs Ace's pinky finger with his own, wrapping them tightly around one another. "I mean, it's hard enough to believe that we're actually doing this. And if we get elected-"

" _When_ we get elected."

"-We'll be able to start constructing electriglass around the city. Then, we'll work on the North city, and then we can move onto spreading the tech to other regions, helping more and more people and readjusting federal law and working for the reestablishment of Fae rights - I mean, the sky's the limit! There's so much we could do!"

"I know." Ace grins at him. "I love it when you get all passionate about this stuff. Nerd "

"I'm the nerd? Ace, you challenged me to a duel less than three minutes ago."

"Justifiable. An insult to my apron is an insult I cannot forgive."

"Aw. Cute."

Luffy stirs a little, reddish feathers poking through the sagging holes in the chaotically knitted blanket. "Mphrff?"

"Hello to you too," Sabo laughs. "Sleep well?"

"S'bo…?"

"Yeah, that's me."

Luffy rolls over, nosing at the soft fabric and managing to look uncharacteristically loveable as he does it. Ace bites his fist. "Fuck. Small."

"Yeah, yeah, we get that you're a proud older brother." Sabo rolls his eyes fondly. "Anyway, isn't the food burning by now?"

At the word 'food', Luffy shoots up, blanket falling from his shoulders and getting tangled around his legs. As Ace bustles into the kitchen, going to check on the food, Sabo holds Luffy down by the shoulders, restraining him.

"Sabo, let go! I'm hungry!"

"It's not ready yet, Lu!"

"But I wanna eat!" Luffy pouts. "Sabooooo…"

"You were listening to my interview?" Sabo asks, to distract him.

Luffy blinks and stops struggling. "Of course I was! I mean, it's really boring but you're _really cool_ when you do it, so it's fun!"

"Thanks, Luffy." Sabo feels his face soften. "How are your crew?"

"They're okay!" Luffy grins. "Something awesome happened."

"What's that?"

"You know Sanji's family are dickfaces?"

"Of course "

"Well, it turns out his sister isn't too bad! She left home and she's staying at the base with us. She might be joining the crew, if we like her!"

"That's great!"

"Yeah, I know!" Luffy beams. "I told her you're my big brother, and she said she 'admires' you… or somethin' like that, anyway."

"She sounds interesting." Sabo smiles. "How many is that now?"

"Well… me, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Vivi, Robin, Franky, Brook, Jinbei and Carrot now! And maybe Sanji's sister! We're getting bigger now again!"

"That's great!" Sabo messes up his hair. "Just make sure you keep it low-level, alright? Don't do anything too risky."

"I know." Luffy pulls his legs up so Sabo can sit down. "And we try, we do."

"Good."

"Anyway-" Luffy yawns, "Are we going to Wakeshead for Ace's birthday this year?"

Sabo shakes his head, taking a seat. "Nah. Not this year. I think it's gonna be a quiet one - we've already got so much going on, with the election and all."

"So we're not doing anything tomorrow?"

"Well, I mean, I'll give him a present or two and make sure he takes the day off work and maybe we'll bang-"

"Sabo!"

"I was joking! That was a joke, I was joking."

Luffy scowls. "S'weird."

"I know, Lu," Sabo says consolingly. "But sometimes, when two people love each other very much-"

Luffy tackles Sabo around the middle and they both topple off the couch and onto the floor. Luffy goes to elbow his brother in the ribs and misses, and Sabo laughs, pinning Luffy easily and holding him down with his right hand.

Luffy pouts up at him. "That hand is always stronger, no faaaair."

"There's no such thing as 'no fair' in a fight." Sabo releases him, chuckling, and as the fingers of his right hand move, there's a small, faint sound like metal moving against metal. Iron catches the light. "And I would have won even if I didn't have this hand."

"Would not."

"Would too."

"Would not."

"Would too."

"Would-"

"Food's up!"

Ace's voice breaks them both out of their argument. Both brothers scramble to their feet, practically running into the kitchen and taking their seats. Despite the apron, Ace's cooking has gotten _good_."

Ace dishes up the chicken and rice and sauce. It's a rare luxury. Money is still tight and macs are still a regular meal, but with Luffy's gang work, as well as Ace and Sabo's joint income, they can afford to eat well on occasion. It's nice to have a stable income like this. It makes life not as hard as it used to be, not as stressful. Sure, things are still difficult. Sabo doesn't doubt that they're going to be difficult for a long time. But… life is good.

Ace sits and that is apparently cue for Luffy to dig into his food like a ravenous wolf, tearing into it at lightning speed. Sabo laughs at starts his own meal, savouring the taste as the warm food fills the slight pit of hunger in his chest. He eats slower than Ace and Luffy - he's more used to having to make food last - and when he is half way through his meal, both Ace and Luffy are nearly done. He catches Luffy's wandering fingers sneaking close to his food and sighs, offering the kid the whole plate.

"You shouldn't do that," Ace admonishes, as Luffy burns through Sabo's food too. "You gotta eat. And you're still kind of skinny…"

"I'm fine, Ace, really." Sabo puts his hands under his chin. "Anyway, I meant to ask you - how are the Whitebeards? Have you heard anything from them lately?"

Ace frowns. "No, now that you mention it. It's been quiet. I mean, I know we're still on good terms after last year, at least."

Sabo smiles a little at the memory - for Ace's birthday last year, they spent Christmas in Wakeshead. It was tense at first, to the point where Sabo joked with Ace that he almost wanted to jump out of another window (Ace didn't appreciate this). But as time passed by, the Whitebeards warmed up to Sabo a little - eventually, he and Newgate even had a friendly discussion. The visit ended on a good note. Sabo is glad for that - Ace shouldn't have to fight his family.

"I'll send them a letter sometime," Sabo says. "After the election. Do you want to see them?"

Ace considers for a moment. "I guess. I mean, do you want to?"

"I think it would be good," Sabo says. "Luffy?"

Luffy nods, making a muffled noise of affirmation through a mouthful of rice, and Ace says, "I'll take that as a yes."

"Alright, then it's settled."

Luffy swallows. "Hey, Sabo, how's dad?"

"Dragon's alright." Sabo drums his fingers lazily on the tabletop. "Same as he always is. He's stressed, but he'll be alright."

"Good!" Luffy drops his knife and fork, letting them clatter down on Sabo's empty plate. "Okay, who's up for Star Wars?"

"I could do with a marathon."

Ace groans. "We've watched them all at least ten thousand times now, y'know."

"Exactly!" Luffy bounces to his feet. "What's one more?"

"I'll go set it up." Sabo starts moving towards the living room.

"At least skip the prequels!" Ace calls after him.

"No chance!"

"We've got work tomorrow!"

"Dragon can do without us for a day."

" _Why_ , though."

Sabo shoots Ace a playful look over his shoulder. "I'm not even into girls and I would date Rey over you, and you know it."

"I'm hurt. And plus, doesn't Rey get with a girl in episode IX?"

Sabo shrugs, turning back towards the door. "Then we'd be best friends. Either way, we're marathoning them all now."

Luffy cheers. "Yay!"

Ace audibly slams his head against the table.

As the brothers bicker in the kitchen, Sabo moves to set up the first film. Their TV is third-hand and honestly quite impossible to use, but it's functional, at least. It's only really used to watch films, because the radio is enough when it comes to news. Sabo inserts the first scratched disk into the DVD player and yells for Ace and Luffy to come in as the opening logos start to flash by. They tumble in, Ace turning off the light as he goes, and Sabo ends up squashed between them, Luffy partially sitting on him and Ace wrapping an arm around his waist. They grab the blanket and spread it over them and Sabo buries his face into it, enjoying the soft, familiar smell it carries.

([this amazing artist](http://rockingthegraveyard.tumblr.com/))

([this incredible artist](https://s-thebluegentleman.tumblr.com/))

As the opening theme begins to play, Ace presses a kiss into Sabo's hair and Sabo calls him a sap. Luffy tells them _shh, the film is starting, shut up,_ and Sabo nuzzles into the warmth of the couch and his family, content to lie here for a while, surrounded by softness and security and love.

Sure, life isn't perfect. It will probably never be perfect. But this… this is all Sabo needs.

And god knows there are far worse places to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> faehghioaejghoa <3 <3 <3


End file.
